Someone to Love
by Mannali23
Summary: HP/DG. Just when they've finally found each other, why does the whole world seem bent on splitting them apart? To think, all it took is one chance meeting to change the course of their lives dramatically. Light/fluffy for the most part.
1. Rescue

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling: She owns it all.

Warning: For the squeamish readers, the beginning contains an _attempted_ rape scene.

Author's note: Canon through book 5 only, disregarding Sirius' death and book 6.

* * *

Chapter 1: Rescue

With her arms pinned to the wall, Daphne glared at the man in front of her. He wasn't drunk, that much she could tell by the lack of alcohol in his breath, although she couldn't say the same for the men holding up her arms to the wall; they reeked of it.

The man chuckled. "My, my, what pretty eyes you have, my dear," his thick, burly fingers tracing the length of her jaw. "I wonder what such a beautiful lady is doing out here, walking the dark roads of this city at such a time, hmm."

As much as she hated to admit it, Daphne was afraid.

It was the middle of the night. All the shops were closed, and shadows were present in every corner and crevice of the alley, the only light coming from the moon shining high above in the night sky, making it very difficult to identify her attackers. The possibility of someone coming to her rescue was near impossible, and the worst part was that she had nowhere to go should she somehow be able to escape from these men.

Forced to flee her own home, she had been searching for a place to stay for the night. Her first thought had been to head to the Leaky Cauldron and see if Tom would give her a room. However, she hadn't been paying to her surroundings as she should have, especially since she was going through the muggle entrance of the pub. Her mind was still numb from the fact that her father, after years of promising her that he would not do it, had been going behind her back and organizing marriage contracts with several of the other pureblood families, bartering her like a common animal. It was heartbreaking, but she knew that if she had stayed, she would have had to adhere to whatever her father decided for her.

Therefore, in her daze, the men had caught her off guard, appearing suddenly out of a dark alleyway and grabbing at her shoulders before pushing her into the alley—everything happening in a blink of an eye, much too fast for her to have had the time to take out her wand from within the confines of her robes, Statue of Secrecy or not. And even if she had, the odds were against her, five to one.

She cringed in disgust. The man's hand had moved to the waistband of her panties. Her heart was beating in fear as his fingers dipped inside and began feeling along her inner folds. Her thighs quivered in an attempt to close her legs, but the two men pinning her arms to the wall also had her legs spread apart, holding them by the bends of her knees.

Tears of frustration leaked out of her eyes as she clenched her teeth in an attempt to bite back the bile threatening to come up her throat as the man began stroking the inside of her walls.

"How very tight you are, my dear," the man smirked, his already dark eyes taking on a sinister glint as he pressed his nose to her chest, moving upwards to lick at her throat. "Perfect for what I have in mind."

Chuckles echoed through the alley as the rest of the men chuckled in agreement—the sick bastards.

Suddenly, the man stopped in his actions, taking his fingers out of her panties and stepping back. Relief flooded her system, thinking that something—anything — had made the man stop in his assault, but it was short-lived. As the man began unbuttoning his trousers and the men on each side of her tightened their grip on her, the relief turned into horror.

Moving back towards her, the man smirked, entwining a finger around a lock of her pale, blonde hair. "Don't worry, my dear. My wife tells me I'm very good at this."

At his admission, she narrowed her eyes at the man, disgust now pouring off of her in waves, wondering if this man's wife knew about the monster she had living in her house. The thought only added to her contempt man at the possibility that this excuse for a man might even be a father.

"I hope your wife has enough sense, then," she said through gritted teeth, "to find another one to make up for your _short_comings."

Outrage colored the man's face, yanking her head back, exposing her neck and eliciting a wince out of her.

"Why you little…!" the man began, but paused, taking a deep through his nostrils. "Don't worry, my dear. Soon, you'll be begging me for release," the man said, looking at her directly in the eye as he pushed aside her panties, "and then we'll see what you say about by _shortcomings_."

However, just as she felt him sliding upwards, teasing the outside of her folds, the men that had been standing behind the man in front of her shouted in terror, making him jerk backwards. He turned around just in time for him to see a big, black dog sink its teeth into the thigh one of the men, the other already sprawled on the ground unconscious.

"What in the—"

Whatever the man was about to say was cut off by a deep, rumbling growl that resonated throughout the alleyway.

Whipping his head around, the man frantically tried to identify the animal responsible, still aware of the painful cries coming from the man on the ground as the black dog continued to maul at his thigh. The men pinning her arms also searched around, although their grip did not loosen up, leaving her just as defenseless against whatever animal hidden within the darkness of the alley as these beastly men.

None of them had to look for long, however, as out of the shadows of the inner alley stepped an ebony black jaguar, judging by its massive size. It was as beautiful as it was frightening; its muscles rippling with its movement, an embodiment of its predatory nature, and its magnificent emerald, green eyes glinting in the moonlight.

It left her mesmerized.

However, the men around her did not share in her sentiments as the one in front of her began backing away in fear. The men that had been pinning her up had let her go in shock, her knees hitting the floor in her sudden liberation. They had begun reaching inside the large coats they had on, where their muggle weapons where probably hiding, but never had the chance to take them out as the jaguar leapt into action. Quicker than she ever thought possible, the jaguar had all three men on the floor; its sleek muscles propelling itself forward from man to man as it struck each in the chest with its powerful claws.

It wasn't long before all the men were out cold.

Using the wall as support, she lifted herself of the ground. Ignoring the unsteadiness of her own legs, she began walking towards the jaguar, stopping just as it turned around to look at her, its piercing, green eyes locking her in place.

Even though she should have been afraid of being inches away from an animal capable of killing her with a swipe of its claws, she felt infinitely better in its presence. She would rather be killed by this beautiful creature than have her body defiled by vile men. However, staring directly at the jaguar, she thought she detected a spark of intelligence burning behind those deep, green eyes—a sense of familiarity passing through her just before it was shoved out of her mind at the impossibility.

Her vision began to dim, and she knew her mind was already shutting off from the shock of what just happened, but just before, she smiled serenely at the beautiful creature.

"Thank you," she whispered softly. She knew it would not understand, but she felt she owed the creature for appearing as it did this night, in this specific alley where she had almost been raped.

Daphne felt her body begin to fall, and she thought she saw a flicker of concern flash through the jaguar's eyes before her entire world fell into darkness. The last thing she remembered were strong, warm arms wrapping around her body.

* * *

He took a deep breath. That had been way too close. Her robes where disheveled, but otherwise she appeared to be uninjured. Harry internally breathed a sigh of relief. They had arrived just in time.

Dread had settled in his stomach when he had spotted the men surrounding the young woman. He and Sirius had been roaming the streets of muggle London, getting him used to being in his animagus form and keeping to the shadows and back alleys as a safety precaution to avoid being seen by any late night wanderers— not a difficult task considering both of them had dark-colored fur. It had been their usual routine for about two months now, ever since school let out. And it had been thanks to the highly keen eyesight of his animagus form that he had been able to see the attack taking place within the darkness of the alley.

But when he had finally caught sight of her, Harry's heart skipped a beat.

With fair, smooth skin that emitted a pearly white glow in the moonlight, and pale, blonde hair that encompassed her soft, angular face, no one would be able to deny her appeal. However, what had really attracted him to the young woman had been her intense azure-gray eyes. As they gazed into his own, the emotion that had shone through her clear eyes had been captivating; the gratitude and utter joy that she felt vibrantly displayed for him to see.

Many spoke of the messages he was able to convey with his eyes alone, but he had never been able to see the same effect from another person—and such a sight it was.

Moreover, as she had stood there staring at him, her eyes had been devoid of fear, a surprise in itself. People usually backed away just at the sight of him, which he admitted was a natural reaction since he technically was a dangerous animal—his friends sure did, even when they knew it was him. Yet, she had not; her eyes had displayed a completely opposite reaction: content.

And just as he had thought that nothing else would surprise him more, the young woman did the most startling thing.

Smiling a beautiful, breathtaking smile, she whispered, "Thank you."

But before he had the time to process this, the young woman had begun to fall, her eyes fluttering closed. He had reacted quickly, bounding towards her and transforming back into his human form just in time to catch her before she hit the ground.

Looking down, he chuckled. How cute, the smile hadn't left her face. There was something his mind kept trying to tell him, as if he should know her from somewhere. Yet, the wall that blocked the passage to this information refused to be knocked down. Deciding to leave it for later, he settled her more comfortably in his arms, wounding one arm around her midsection, and the other arm under her knees, before standing from his semi-crouch.

He carried her over to where Sirius, having reverted back to his human form, was rounding up the five unconscious men, restraining them with a spell.

"Alright there, Sirius?"

"Of course, pup. Like these men ever had a chance against Padfoot. I'm just going to leave them here for the muggle authorities to take care of." Stowing his wand away, Sirius turned to face him, grinning broadly.

His eyes widened when he caught sight of the young woman. "Is that her?

He nodded his head in answer. "Though, she passed out before I could ask her anything,"

"That's alright, pup," Sirius said. "I don't think it would have been a good idea to morph back in front her anyways. We might be close to the Leaky Cauldron, but we don't know if she's Muggle or not."

"I don't think so, Sirius; she seems familiar."

"Still, pup, we wouldn't want to risk it with her probably already in shock from the attack." A mischievous smirk came upon his face. "Besides, if she is a witch, we wouldn't want her to start hyperventilating from being in the presence of _the_ savior of the Wizarding World."

He shook his head, rolling his eyes at his godfather. That had happened only one time. One time. "Let's just get her back to the manor."

Sirius laughed. "Whatever you say, oh savior."

"Sirius!"

And with a crack of Apparition, they were gone.

* * *

Daphne awoke feeling very warm and comfortable, her entire body feeling cocooned and safe as the bed shaped to every contour of her body. She burrowed further into the covers, not wanting to wake up.

That lasted for about two seconds, before her eyes jerked open. A bed? Fully awake now, she tried to sit up, but her whole body felt lethargic and slow. Every movement felt like she was pushing through water.

How long had she been asleep?

It took her a while, but her body was able to cooperate long enough for her to finally sit upright and look around.

Tall, open-shuttered windows filtered the light from outside, highlighting the light gray, almost white, walls of the room and accenting the soft tans and whites of the bed and straw-colored, hardwood floor. A tan colored sofa was located at the right wall of the room, right in front of one of the windows with a coffee table at the side, and the dresser she could see in front of her fit nicely with the room—a stained, white wood color and skillfully crafted. The canopy of the bed was also a perfect combination with its thin, lightly colored, metal frame and tan, patterned, sheer curtains drawn apart to each side.

It left Daphne stumped. This was definitely not her room. So, the question was: who's was it? Backtracking through her memories, she tried to remember what happened last night.

Hugging her body close, she shivered at the thought of the men that had almost raped her. She could still feel as the man groped and felt up her body, making her squirm in disgust. She thanked whatever deity was looking out for her for sending that beautiful jaguar to her rescue; animal or not, she would always be grateful.

She took a deep breath. Okay, she was fine. She was in a comfortable bed in a bright, cozy room. And she still had her clothes on. That was good. She looked down. Yes, she still had the cream colored dress she had last night; her dark robe was spread over the sofa, and removing the covers, she saw she still had her thigh-high black stockings. Yes, she was good.

Now, some sort of clue as to where in Merlin's name she was would be even better. Her heart stung with pain at the fact that she was now homeless, but she would get through that. Her location was the number one priority at the moment.

Sliding her legs to the side of the bed, she tried to stand up. But as her legs attempted to take her weight, a massive sense of vertigo hit her, sending her vision in a whirl of colors. She tried to gain her bearings back, but her knees began to buckle. And just as she thought her body was about to hit the floor, forcing her to bring her arms out in an attempt to break her fall, instead of feeling the cold, hardwood floor, her hands grasped a warm, hard chest as a pair of arms wrapped around her waist.

Daphne looked up, about to ask who exactly it was that had broken her fall, but her words died in her throat as she looked into a pair of deep, familiar, emerald green eyes.

* * *

Two days. That's how long had passed since they rescued the young woman. And frankly, Harry was starting to worry. Sirius said it was normal with shock, but still, he couldn't help it. There was just something about her that had his magic churning excitedly at the thought of her and those wide, expressive eyes. They were in the kitchen eating breakfast when the spell Sirius had put on the young woman's room told them she was finally awake.

Internally, Harry breathed a sigh of relief.

Giving Sirius a short, muttered response, he quickly hopped on the chance to see her, striding swiftly out of the kitchen and up the stairs that lead to the second floor and the young woman's room.

Hesitantly opening the door, Harry was in time to see the young woman's legs begin to give out. Knowing what was about to happen, he quickly crossed the room, intending to prevent her fall. He wrapped his arms around her surprisingly thin waist, but was caught off guard when her hands reached out to stop herself, pushing him backward and making them both fall.

He knew there would be a definite bruise somewhere, but he put that in the back of his mind to look down at the soft and supple young woman in his arms right now, pressed up against his body.

His heart skipped a beat, now twice in her presence. They were the same as last night. Her eyes, wide and shining brightly with emotion, looked back up at him. His vision narrowed down to those two, vibrant orbs, an intense silence settling between. For those few seconds, everything seemed to align into place. He didn't know what it meant but being here with her, having her in his arms, felt...right.

"Are you alright?" he asked, breaking whatever they had, albeit reluctantly.

"Yes...I'm fine. Thank you," she answered softly, blinking as if shaken out of stupor.

"Are you able to stand up?"

"Ah, well, I…"

Seeing the uncertainty in her eyes, he gave a small smile. "Would you like some help, then?

Not waiting for an answer, He kept one arm around her waist, using the other to lift them up, making her yelp in surprise as she pressed herself tighter against his chest, gripping his shirt like a life line. Standing, he brought his other arm back up and placed both hands on her waist to keep her steady as she tried to stand. Harry waited patiently, giving her time to get her bearings back.

Slowly, her grip loosened, leaving the palms of her hands resting against his chest. "Steady?"

The young woman looked back up at his eyes, a small smile on her face. "Yes, thank you. But…"

"What?" he asked, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion.

"I wonder if you always make it a habit of this, Potter."

He grimaced. Right, of course she knew who she was, which meant that she was definitely not a Muggle.

The young woman let out a small laugh in response to his reaction, her eyes lighting up with mirth. it was infectious, and he couldn't help but smile too.

"Don't look so worried," she said, bringing her left hand up to pat at his cheek. "I'm not going to go loony in your presence."

She said that with such a straight face that he chuckled at her words.

"I see, but that leaves me at a disadvantage," he said bringing his right hand up to close over the hand on his cheek.

"Oh, and why would that be?" she said with a tilt of her head.

"Because, my mysterious friend, you know my name, but I don't know yours."

She tsked, a smile still on her face. "One would think that after spending six, soon to be seven, years in the same school together the boy would know the girl's name, Mr. Potter."

At his questioning glance, she continued.

"Daphne Greengrass, Slytherin, and soon to be seventh year at Hogwarts."

His eyes lit up with realization. Of course! That's why she seemed so familiar. She was the one who would sit at the far end of the Slytherin table, away from Draco and his cronies. The guys were always mentioning her in their talks in the Gryffindor common room.

"By that look in your eyes, it seems like you finally remember."

He had the decency to look sheepish. "Yeah, and now I feel like a total prat. I should have known."

Daphne shook her head. "That's alright. It's to be expected."

He raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"My discreteness as a Slytherin tends to be at higher level than most."

He nodded in understanding. Daphne probably understood the concept of a double-edged sword more than anybody, being as beautiful as she was. A wave of anger swept through his body, his grip on her tightening in response, as he thought about the men that attacked her last night; he wondered if that hadn't been the first time she had to go through that.

"But, of course, it's not like I'm the savior and all that, so life isn't all that bad." Daphne continued, although her eyes shined with reassurance, as if she knew what he had been thinking.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say that you've been spending too much time with my godfather, Miss Greengrass."

Daphne opened her mouth to respond but was interrupted by a loud crack, making them both jump.

"Master Harry Potter, sir! Dobby has come to find out if Harry Potter, sir, is alright and to tell sir that his breakfast is getting cold!"

"I'm fine Dobby. Go tell Sirius that I'll be down in a bit," he said calmly to the hyperactive house elf. "And would you please set up another plate for our guest here, Dobby?"

"Of course! Dobby will do anything for Master Harry Potter sir!" Dobby said nodding, his ears flopping up and down.

"Thank you, Dobby," he said before the house elf disappeared with a crack of Apparition.

He sighed. He'd probably been up here for a while if Sirius was sending Dobby.

"What's wrong, Potter?" Daphne asked

"Nothing, really. I just lost track of time," he said. "And call me Harry."

Daphne nodded in response. "Then, you can call me Daphne."

Letting his hands fall to Daphne's lower back, he smiled. "I know I didn't ask you before, but would you like to eat breakfast?"

At his question, Daphne's stomach grumbled in response, making her face go slightly pink in embarrassment.

"I guess that's a yes, then," he chuckled.

Steeping back, he barely realized how close they had actually been to each other as his chest cooled in response to the lost warmth of Daphne's body. He shook his head amazement, wondering if the surprises would ever stop with her.

"Harry, wait," Daphne said, entwining her hand in his. Stepping in front of him once more, she looked at him with the same emotion-filled eyes as the night of her attack. "Thank you, for saving me. It was you, wasn't it? The jaguar that stopped those men?"

And he really couldn't help it; his chuckling turned into full blown laughter.

* * *

A/N: Be happy, dear cousin. Be happy.

Any questions, comments, or concerns, please feel free to leave it as a review or as a PM, whichever works best for you.

Thank you for reading! Until next time! :)


	2. Understanding

To all new readers, hello! And to those returning, welcome back!

* * *

Chapter 2: Understanding

Daphne wasn't really sure what had set Harry off, but she was clearly missing something.

She had been surprised earlier when she had looked up and seen the same emerald green eyes of the beautiful jaguar that had saved her life on the young man who had broken her fall. She hadn't believed it was possible at first, but remembering the eerie intelligence the big cat had shown and the fact that she did live in the wizarding world, it should have been obvious. The man was an animagus. It was why she hadn't pushed him away from him the first chance she had.

However, what she really had not been expecting was for that man to be Harry Potter. She had to admit, the eyes on the jaguar had been familiar, but she had disregarded it because she had been sure her mind had been playing tricks on her. Yet, seeing them up close, there was no denying it; they were the exactly the same. Harry Potter was the one who rescued her.

_How bizarre_, she thought.

Never in her life would she have expected that. But then again, she had never expected her father to break his promise either.

Daphne wasn't complaining, though. In her mind, she recognized that if any man other than Potter had been the one to enter the room, the entire scene would have played out differently. Any other man would have probably taken advantage of the fact they now had a beautiful, young woman in their debt—most of the ones she'd encountered in her life were like that. But Potter, she admitted, was different. He did none of that; he didn't look at her with leering eyes, nor did his hands wander when she had unknowingly given him a chance to, being pressed up to his body as she had been. No, Potter's gaze, unlike many men, was benevolent, and his hold on her had been light and very gentle. It was surprising, but it warmed her cool heart.

Even if only for that reason alone, Daphne was willing to give Potter—Harry—a chance.

"Are you almost done, Harry?" she asked with mock annoyance, though a smile was still clearly on her face. "I don't know what in Merlin's name was so funny with what I said, but if my assumption was wrong, you can just tell me, you know."

"I'm sorry. You just caught me by surprise again," Harry said, wiping the last vestiges of laughter away, although an obvious smile was still on his face. "You're very good at that."

"Yes, well, now that we've established that, I'm pretty sure you promised me breakfast, Mr. Potter," she said, crossing her arms across her chest. "And my stomach does not appreciate being kept waiting."

"Back to Potter now, are we?"

"Until I get my breakfast, we are."

"I see. Well then, Miss Greengrass, if madam permits, let us go," Harry said with a slight turn of his head, extending his left arm towards her, his eyes still shining with mirth.

Smiling, Daphne shook her head at his antics, before taking the offered hand.

Stepping into the kitchen, Daphne was assaulted by a myriad of mouth-watering smells, her stomach grumbling and tightening to a painful degree, making her realize how hungry she actually was. The first thing she noticed, however, was the amount of windows.

Just like the room she woke up in, the kitchen was warm and inviting, with soft, white hues coloring it; however, the entire left side of the kitchen was decorated with floor-to-ceiling windows that encircled a small round table. It was a beautiful sight to see as it let her view the outside garden. Moreover, the doorway in front of her, from what she could see just across the kitchen, lead into a dining area, and judging by the amount of light coming from it, she guessed it was probably surrounded by just as many beautiful windows.

It was pleasing. The warmth it emitted, not just here but the presence of the entire house as well, was soothing to her wounded soul.

Taking a look across to the small round table, she saw that her plate was already set up, judging by how full with food it was, along with what she guessed was Harry's unfinished breakfast on the plate next to hers. Making her way to the table, she sat down and was about to take a bite out of one of the potato scones on her plate when she felt Harry's eyes on her.

Breaking her gaze from the delicious looking breakfast, Daphne lifted her head to see Harry leaning against the kitchen counter with his arms crossed across his chest, a questioning glint in his eyes.

She raised an eyebrow at his stare. "Is something wrong?"

Harry, not realizing he had been staring, shook his head. "No, nothing really." He straightened out of his lean and went for the chair next to hers. "I was just wondering, Miss Greengrass…"

Daphne almost laughed. She could see the blatant curiosity shimmering behind those gorgeous green eyes of his. It made _her_ curious to find out the thoughts swirling through his mind. "Yes, Mr. Potter?"

As he leaned towards her, his demeanor became pensive and—worried?

"Why were you not afraid?" he said softly, almost hesitant in the way his eyes shifted away from hers for a quick moment before returning their gaze.

It had her brows furrowing in confusion. Daphne had immediately thought he was about to ask about the attack, but the hesitancy that he showed was not something she believed would have been because of that. Harry was probably dying to find out, but she knew he wouldn't ask directly about the attack until she herself brought it up, which had her thinking about what he actually meant then. What else should she have been…?

"Of your animagus form?" she asked. Is that what he was asking about? Why should she have been afraid of that?

Harry leaned back on the chair, staring at his hands on the table; the look on his face almost uncertain, anxious, making Daphne wonder if he was unhappy with his inner animal. A sad fact to say if it was true.

"It was surprising—seeing you standing there, not backing away in fear as I'd expected." He looked back up at her and chuckled softly. "You even smiled at me, you know—before passing out spectacularly, that is. Brilliant, if I do say so myself."

Daphne narrowed her eyes at him. "I'd dare say, are you mocking me, Mr. Potter?"

He smiled innocently. "Now, why would I do that, Miss Greengrass?

"I wouldn't know," she said with a sly grin to her slips, crossing one leg over the other and placing her hands on top of them. "But as for your question, it is simple; there was nothing to be afraid of. Between those ghastly men and the beautiful creature that is your animagus form, I would have rather place my life with the predatory animal."

Harry stood there, momentarily stunned at her answer, before he broke into an amused smile, "The surprises never cease with you, do they?"

"I guess not," she hummed. "Why ask me that, though?"

Harry smiled, a small shake to his head. "Just curious."

She really didn't believe that, considering the play of emotions she had seen in his eyes, but she wouldn't pry. He was giving her the space she needed; so she would kindly return the favor. "At any rate, as I've been officially saved by you, Mr. Potter, I can admit with full confidence that you are my savior." Daphne smirked, tilting her head slightly, "Isn't that just brilliant, my dear savior?"

Said savior frowned. "You're mocking me, aren't you?" Harry said flatly.

Daphne's eyes widened in mock amazement, "Why, yes, I am, Mr. Potter."

They stared at each other for a moment before Harry narrowed his eyes at her. "I believe you have a breakfast to take care of, Miss Greengrass."

With a laugh at his expense, Daphne happily turned to said breakfast.

* * *

Pushing her plate away, Daphne let her head fall on the table. "I think I ate too much."

Harry laughed; his own plate clean of food as well, he got up to pick up both their plates and place them on the sink. "I can't believe you ate as much as you did." He really had been surprised. There aren't many girls he knew that would eat without question like Daphne had. It was cute.

Daphne groaned, "My stomach is about to explode." She turned her head to glare at Harry. "Why didn't you stop me?"

"And miss the chance of seeing you suffer?" Turning away from the sink, he looked at Daphne, "I don't think so," he smirked.

Narrowing her eyes at Harry, she lifted her head from the table. "That's not something a Gryffindor should say, Mr. Potter."

Harry raised an eyebrow at her. "I'm pretty sure it's supposed to be Harry now, _Daphne._" He walked back towards the table to lean on the chair in front of Daphne, folding his arms to place them on the back rest, "And who said you could only belong to one house?"

Staring directly into Harry's eyes, Daphne's eyes widened, "No…"

Harry only grinned. "You know, I think you could give Hermione a run for her money. You keep picking these things up really quick."

"You lie," Daphne stated, placing her hands flat on the table.

"I'm sad to say, he isn't, mademoiselle."

Both of them turned to see Sirius leaning against the doorway leading into the leaving room, before he straightened from his lean and stepped into the kitchen towards the pair.

"It was quite a shock when I found out, too."

Harry snorted. "More like firm denial." It had taken weeks for the canine animagus to even begin accepting it.

Sirius grinned, but chose not to comment. "So, pup, who's the lovely lady gracing us with her presence this fine morning?" Sirius asked with a grasp at Harry's shoulder.

Daphne stood up, holding out her hand, "Daphne Greengrass, Mr. Black, and thank you for your help."

"It's of no problem, call me Sirius. Greengrass is it?" he said, shaking her hand kindly, "Does your father happen to be Nicholas Greengrass, then."

She tried to hide it, but Harry didn't miss the way Daphne's eyes darkened in mention of her father—he didn't think Sirius did either. "Yes, that would be him." she said, somewhat coolly.

"I went to school with the bloke. Although, I guess you got your looks from your mother since I distinctly remember him with dark hair," Sirius hummed thoughtfully. "Also answers if you're a witch or not."

"Where have you been, Sirius?" Harry asked, straightening from his lean.

"Hm," Sirius turned, "oh, right." Reaching for the inside of his robes, Sirius pulled out two envelopes. "Well, it seems like Gringotts sent you and I a letter. I was trying to get a hold of Remus to see if he could help us out with the contents of these letters tomorrow." Giving Harry his, Sirius sat down on the chair next to Harry's.

Opening the letter, Harry's eyebrows furrowed.

_Harry James Potter,_

_Your presence is required tomorrow on the 31 of July at noon to discuss the incoming changes to your vault._

_Please be prompt._

_Gringotts Wizarding Bank_

"Changes to my vault?" Harry looked over at Sirius. "Why would it be changing?"

"It's your seventeenth birthday, pup. I would guess your parents left you with a little something for when you reached adult age. The Potters were a very well-off family, just so you know."

"How would Remus help?" Harry had been about to ask Sirius about his letter, but decided against it. It wasn't his business. If he needed to know, Sirius would tell him.

"To keep our new friend here company, of course," Sirius said, looking over at Daphne. "You don't mind staying here, do you?"

Daphne shook her head. "I don't mind. Remus is Professor Lupin, right?" she directed at Harry.

"Yeah, he's a family friend."

"Well, then we're all set," Sirius chimed in, placing his hands in his knees and standing up. "Why don't you help Daphne out here with her stuff and show around the house a bit, Harry? I need to relay this all back to Remus through the floo."

Smiling at his godfather, Harry nodded. It might not seem like it, but Sirius was being very considerate to Daphne. He was probably as curious as Harry was to find out why she seemed so distant when speaking about her father, but he knew not to question her just yet. If she wanted to talk, she would tell them when she was ready. In the meantime, they would do all they could to help her out.

"Your birthday's on the thirtieth?

Harry cast Daphne a quizzical look. "No, it's on the thirty-first."

Daphne opened her mouth to say something but paused, staring at Harry with a thoughtful look in her eyes.

"Harry, how long was I asleep?"

The rest of the day was spent strolling around Black Manor. With the property surrounded by sparse forest and a small, clear lake sitting at the back, it was a very open area. Elements of nature were interwoven into the manor, making it blend in with the beautiful environment; plants climbing up its walls, thin vines wrapping around the columns, flowers hanging from the roof. Harry showed Daphne all of this as they explored the rooms of the house, filling the walk with idle chatter and conversation. They only stopped to head down for some dinner and afterwards ended up back in Daphne's room.

"It looks much more carefree than what I thought a Black home would look like."

Harry chuckled. "That's because the manor was built during the Black family's rare moments of sanity, somewhere around the 1600's, I believe. If you look at the rest of the Black family estates after that, you'll find that they fit the more modern view of the Blacks—very depressing." Both he and Sirius had been completely floored when they realized how bright the entire house was, considering the Black family's penchant for everything dark.

"Offending your godfather, Harry?" Daphne asked with a raised brow. She was sitting at the foot of the bed, facing Harry, who was leaning with his back pressed upon the dresser in front of her.

Harry scoffed. "Hardly. The man is always complaining about his family."

"I'm guessing you've been staying here since the end of fourth year, then, when he was finally freed of his charges?"

He remembered that year. Before taking the portkey back to Hogwarts, he had been able to stupefy Pettigrew and bring him back to the school along with Cedric's body. Since the Minister himself was there as a witness, Sirius had been quickly released of all his charges by the end of the term.

Straightening from his lean, Harry shook his head, "Not really. We used to live in one of the more recent Black estates where Sirius grew up in, but—"

"—it was depressing," Daphne finished with a grin.

He smiled. "Exactly. Sirius went looking around his vault and brought up this surprising number. We've been living here since the beginning of summer break."

Daphne chuckled softly. _"_That might explain some things."

"Like what?"

Smiling softly, she responded, "You seem happier."

Harry gave her small, genuine smile. One day he would ask her exactly how she did that. "Yeah, I guess I am. And look, Daphne, I don't know what caused you to be walking the streets of Muggle London so late at night, or if your father has anything to do with it, but know this room will be yours for as long as you need it."

Daphne looked momentarily stunned at Harry's sudden declaration, but slowly, her lips quirked into a soft, sincere smile. "Thank you, Harry…for everything."

Harry's smile softened, "That's what friends are for, aren't they?"

"Yeah, I guess they are." Daphne chuckled warmly.

* * *

The next morning, Daphne woke up aware and unconcerned of her location. Taking care of her morning routine with the use of the conveniently located bathroom in her room, she showered and changed for the new day, thankful for the fact that her shrunken suitcase from home had not fallen out of her robes during her attack.

Putting on a simple, blush colored dress that reached down to her mid-thigh, and her only pair of shoes at the moment, ankle-length boots made of soft, dark brown leather with a thick heel, Daphne went down to the kitchen where she could already smell the delicious aroma of morning breakfast. Entering, she saw her former professor sitting at the table with a copy of the _Daily Prophet_ in his hands.

"Good morning, Professor Lupin."

"Ah, Ms. Greengrass, good morning," he greeted, folding the paper back into order and placing it on the table, "No need for formalities. Since I am no longer you professor, Remus will do just fine."

"Daphne," she returned.

Remus smiled, "Very well, Daphne. Harry and Sirius left for Gringotts not too long ago. They'll be back around three or so."

Daphne nodded in acknowledgement, settling herself to wait with Remus until Harry and his godfather returned. She felt awed and pleasingly warmed by the care Harry was showing her, a mere stranger by definition terms. The honest sincerity behind his eyes wasn't something she was used to seeing, considering the house she was in.

She hadn't been lying yesterday. The Harry Potter she was barely getting to know now seemed completely different from the Harry Potter she was used to seeing from across house tables, classrooms or while walking the hallways of Hogwarts. His demeanor, once very solemn and weighed down upon by worries no young man should never have to go through at his age, seemed lighter; his eyes, once dark with despair, seemed luminescent, and shinned bright with curiosity and contentment.

For once in her life, Daphne was curious to learn more about a man.

* * *

The inside of Gringotts was as quiet as the day he first stepped into the building at a mere eleven years old. Throughout the inside of the bank, all that was heard was the scribbling of quills over parchment as the rows of goblins went on with whatever work they had to do.

It felt rather odd, even now six years later.

"Mr. Potter, good of you to be on time. You are expected," the head goblin said once he and Sirius had reached the front desk.

Surprised, Harry glanced sideways at Sirius, before following after the goblin. They were lead into one of the back rooms of the bank, but before he could enter, he was stopped by the goblin in front of him.

"Only Mr. Potter can enter the room, Mr. Black."

"But he's my godfather. Shouldn't he be allowed to be there with me?" Harry asked with furrowed brows.

Sirius grasped his shoulder. "It's alright, Harry. You go see what they want. Besides, I have something I need to take care of as well."

Harry didn't like it, but he nodded in understanding, "Alright, Sirius."

Stepping into the room, there was another goblin already sitting behind a large wood desk. He took a seat on the only chair available as the other goblin moved to the right side of the room in front of the desk.

Looking at him from atop of his glasses, the goblin spoke up, "Mr. Potter, Welcome to Gringotts. I am Griphook, appointed manager of all Potter accounts. I trust your presence here means your received the letter of notification?"

"Yes, although I don't know what it meant by upcoming changes."

Griphook nodded in understanding. "Upon your seventeenth year, Mr. Potter, certain parts of your parent's will were invoked, and as Potter heir, it is Gringotts' responsibility to inform you of your new status."

"New status?"

Griphook went on as if he hadn't heard him, taking out two scrolls from under his desk as well as a small cube with a black, glass orb on top of it. Handing the weird-looking cube to the other goblin, it walked towards him and held the object out in front of him.

"Before we commence, place your right hand on the orb," Griphook said.

Though wary about the orb, Harry did what he was told. He felt a slight sting on the tip of his fingers before it quickly disappeared.

Griphook nodded and the other goblin removed the orb-cube from under his hand, returning it to the desk. Griphook opened one of the scrolls, which confused Harry as it was blank, and placed the object on top of the opened scroll. The orb glowed blue and the once blank scroll was now filled with rows of writing.

"What was the orb for, sir?" Harry asked, making him wince as he let his curiosity get the better of him.

"That Mr. Potter was to prove that you were indeed Harry Potter." Thankfully the goblin seemed unoffended with his ignorance. "Now, if all your question have been answered, let us return to the changes in your account," he said with a pointed glance at his direction. Maybe he spoke too soon.

Sheepishly, Harry nodded.

"As per your parent's will, you are now allowed access to all Potter vaults and properties." Here, Griphook handed the goblin by the desk a key, which he then gave to Harry. "All deeds to the properties are kept in the vaults, but should the need ever rise, we have copies of the deeds stored in our archives."

"Excuse me, but did you say more than one vault?" Harry asked, disbelief already beginning to color his face.

Griphook nodded. "Yes, there are five vaults, one of which contains miscellaneous items from along the years. There were originally three vaults, but as the main Potter vaults have been left untouched for the past seventeen years, wealth from the various investments the Potter family has kept with many wizard and muggle businesses accumulated and resulted in Gringotts having to increase the number of vaults to accommodate the growth. Here is a summary of your account, Mr. Potter."

Handing him the document, Harry quickly scanned over it.

_Oh, Merlin…_

The amount of money in these vaults was outrageous. He could probably support all the inhabitants of a small country—for ten years! Looking farther down, there were a list of properties scattered all throughout Britain and several parts of France.

_This a lot more than 'a little something.'_ Harry thought dryly.

"Moreover, Mr. Potter," Griphook continued, making Harry wonder how much worse this could all get, "as you are now of age, you are now head of your house, and although this normally happens with the former lord's death, Mr. Black has agreed to transfer his title as Lord of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black to his chosen heir early. This means that you now have access to all Black accounts as well. Here are the rings."

Harry accepted the rings numbly, too stumped to do anything else.

"And one more thing before you leave, as per Ministry guidelines, your name will be added to the list of eligible wizard bachelors in the Ministry registry kept in the Department of Families. All information regarding that will be owled to you, if you so wish."

However, Harry wasn't paying attention anymore as his eyes were glued to the _two_ lord rings now in his hand. What the hell? Is this what Sirius meant when he said he had something to take care of?

"That would be all, Mr. Potter. You are free to go."

Hearing his dismissal, Harry stood up and was lead back out of the room to the entrance of the bank where Sirius was waiting with a broad grin on his face.

"So, how'd it go pup?" Sirius asked

Harry crossed his arms over his chest and glared at his godfather. "I hate you right now."

Sirius blinked in surprise at the declaration. "What'd I do?"

* * *

"Harry!"

"No, Sirius!"

Daphne perked up; they were back earlier than expected. Closing the book she had been reading, she placed it back on one of the many shelves that lined the staircase wall and followed the sound of Sirius and Harry's voices, turning into the living room and spotting Remus by the doorway.

"Aren't they back a bit early?" Daphne asked lowly, stepping in close to Remus and keeping her eyes on the arguing duo by the floo entrance.

"Yes, they are," Remus said with a chuckle, "And I'm guessing Harry was none too happy with the news."

"What news would that be?" Daphne asked, turning her head towards Remus.

Remus tilted his head slightly, a small, amused smile gracing his lips. With a raised brow, Daphne turned her attention back to the arguing pair.

"It belongs to you, not me! Even the goblins were surprised!"

Sirius rolled his eyes at his godson. "You're being far too dramatic, pup."

"Dramatic?" Harry shouted in indignation, his hands moving animatedly with his shout, "I'm not a Black, Sirius. I shouldn't be given the title— or the ridiculous amount of money that comes with it. There's already so much from the Potter vaults that I don't even know what to do with it!"

"But Harry, you're my heir," Sirius said with a grin, "If not now, it would have been transferred to you upon my death anyways, so it doesn't really matter. Besides, if I'm not mistaken, your grandmother was a Black; her name was Dorea, I believe."

"But Sirius—"

"And unless you want _Draco_ _Malfoy_ to have it, since he is also technically a Black by blood, you should just be a good little Lord and accept the glorious present from your dear godfather," he smirked. "Anyway, it's not like I won't have access to the vaults anymore. It just means that _you_ will have access to them as well. That's what you were worried about, wasn't it?" Sirius said, giving Harry a knowing look.

Glaring at his godfather, Harry huffed in defeat, his hands coming back down to rest at his sides.

Sirius chuckled. "Cheer up, pup," he said, grabbing Harry's shoulder, "It's not like the world's coming to an end."

Harry only grunted in response, his head turning to the side.

With one last pat to Harry's shoulder, Sirius turned around, throwing a triumphant grin in Remus' direction. Shaking his head in in bemusement, Remus waited until Sirius was close enough before playfully slapping Sirius upside the head and then turning towards the kitchen. Rubbing the offended area, Sirius pouted at Remus before following after him.

Chuckling softly to herself at the grown men's behavior, Daphne shifted her eyes back in Harry's direction. "You know Harry, staring holes into the sofa won't change anything."

Lifting his eyes, Harry glowered at her.

Daphne rolled her eyes. She was beginning to realize how stubborn Harry could be.

Striding over, she stopped directly in from of Harry and stared directly into his troubled eyes. Lifting a hand, she placed it on Harry's chest, letting it slowly travel upwards past the curve of his neck and the side of his face, burying her fingers in his unruly, black locks. "Did you know, Mr. Potter," she spoke softly, "that you have every right to be worried about their loved ones?"

Pursing his lips, Harry stayed silent.

Nonplussed, Daphne kept going. Steeping closer into Harry's personal space, she let her other hand rest at his chest, "But did you know, Mr. Potter," she drawled, "that too many worries can have the ability to give you wrinkles?"

Keeping her eyes on Harry, she continued, "And did you know who you would look like by the time you're fifty-three if you keep this up?" Placing both hands on the side of his face, Daphne leaned forward, keeping her eyes directly on Harry's, and stopping inches before his face, she whispered, "Professor Dumbledore."

Harry didn't respond at first, but then, shoulders dropping, his lips quirked into a small, amused smile "Offending your headmaster, Miss Greengrass?"

"Hardly," she scoffed, stepping back to place her hands at her hips. "The man would probably laugh and end up agreeing with me if I were to say it to his face."

"Oh really?" Harry drawled with raised brows.

Daphne shrugged noncommittally, "It's one of the perks of being a Slytherin."

Their eyes locked, a silent understanding passing between them before both of them chuckled. Smiling, Harry raised a hand between them. "Let's go eat."

With a nod, Daphne placed her own hand atop of his and walked alongside Harry towards the kitchen.

* * *

Any questions, comments, or concerns, please feel free to leave it as a review or as a PM, whichever works best for you.

Until next time! :)


	3. A Little Something

Chapter 3- A Little Something

Walking to the kitchen, Harry decided not to let the new title bother him. He might not be too comfortable with the idea, but coming from Sirius, he could understand. It was just hard to believe how much was now under his name now—which reminded him. Pausing in his walk and gaining a questioning glance from Daphne, he searched through the pockets of his baggy, muggle jeans until he found what he was looking for.

Taking a good look at them, the rings actually weren't as bad as he had thought. Both were simple in design with only the family crest on the band, although the Black family ring was silver, while the Potter family ring was gold, and quite unlike the gaudy image of them he had in his mind.

"I'm guessing those are the rings the goblins gave you?" Daphne prompted, glancing at the rings in his hand.

Harry nodded. "Yeah, although I'm not entirely sure which hand it is I'm supposed to put them on," a confused frown marring his features.

The only person he knew that was head of their house was Mr. Weasley, but he didn't think he'd ever seen him with a ring, other than the gold marriage band on his left hand. And the only other person he could think of was Lucius Malfoy. But even he didn't provide a clue as to where as every time he had gone against the man, black gloves would always adorn his hands, hiding any rings he might have.

"Both go on your right," Daphne informed him, after seeing his confused expression.

Harry grinned. "Thanks." Sliding them through, his ring finger through the Potter ring and his middle finger through the Black ring, they were a bit big, but as if reading his mind, the rings then emitted a short glow as they re-sized to his fingers. Looking at them on his fingers, Harry couldn't help but the sigh at the resoluteness of the rings weighing down on his right hand, as if now a constant reminder of his change in status.

Daphne snickered at Harry's despondent look. "Don't look so glum about it. Normal wizards would be elated with the news."

"I don't think I've ever been normal, Daphne," Harry chuckled ruefully, slipping his hands into his pockets.

Despite how unrelated this was, he found himself bitterly thinking back to the times he had ended up locked in the cupboard, wondering what he had done for the fates to deal him such a cruel hand. His mind had been in constant search of an answer—anything at all that would explain to him why. What made him so different from all the other children? Why did it have to be him?

During those times, he remembered how desperately he would wish for the normality his aunt and uncle would always strive for—something which apparently he lacked— just so that he would fit in with the only family he'd ever known. But any semblance of normality, he learned, turned out to be farther from his reach than he had ever thought the day he found out about the Boy-Who-Lived—and how his life would never be normal.

"True," Daphne started off slowly, brows drawn together in thoughtful consideration. "And this may sound selfish, but a normal Harry Potter would mean that I'd probably be in St. Mungo's right now. So I at least see that as a good thing." She turned to him with a sympathetic grin, giving his shoulder a reassuring squeeze before letting go and heading into the kitchen.

Staring after her retreating figure, Harry couldn't stop the slow smile that worked its way up to his lips as he followed after her.

* * *

Sirius was the first one to look up at them as they entered the kitchen, glancing down at Harry's right hand, before flashing them a bright grin from his spot at the kitchen table. "I see our irritated kitty has calmed down," smirking as he shifted his gaze in Daphne's direction as she took a seat next to him. "Seems to me you make a perfect cat nip, Miss Greengrass."

With a small smile, Daphne shrugged. "I try."

Harry just gave them an amused look and rolled his eyes in exasperation, before moving towards the chair beside Remus, smiling appreciatively at him when he pinched Sirius in the arm, making his godfather yelp and rub at his arm with a pout.

Sometime during their dinner, which Dobby had so enthusiastically made, a loud screech was heard—one made by a distinctly familiar owl. Jerking his head up in habit, as did everyone else in the kitchen, Harry's eyes brightened as he saw Hedwig flying in from the kitchen window above the sink. She swooped gracefully over them, dropping her burden on Harry's lap, before landing skillfully behind his chair.

"Who's the package from, pup?" Sirius asked curiously.

Harry absentmindedly raised his left fingers up to the bird, who nipped at them softly as he stroked her feathers a few times. His attention was on the letter attached to the parcel. Reaching for it, a happy smile spread across his face as he realized who it was from. "It's from Hermione."

_Dear Harry,_

_I sincerely hope that your summer has been as phenomenal as mine. Australia is a beautiful country, and I have thoroughly enjoyed the wonderful scenery. Did you know there was a wizard's library here? My parents and I were searching through the local market and stumbled upon in by accident, thinking it had been an antique store. The size of it is amazing, Harry! I wish you were here to see it._

_But more importantly, happy birthday! I'm sorry I can't be there to say it to you personally, but we should arrive in time for Bill and Fleur's wedding. _

_Your friend,_

_Hermione_

Smiling at her letter, Harry placed it on the table to open the parcel she had sent with it, ripping off the paper surrounding it. He chuckled in amusement. _Instincts of a Jaguar_—of course Hermione would send a book.

It was just then that a loud noise was heard by the window. He turned just in time to see Ron's owl, Errol, fly in towards them, landing awkwardly on the table. He laughed softly at the owl, before gently prying the letter from its leg, the package the owl had been carrying already on the table.

_Harry,_

_Hope your summer is going much better than mine, mate. Mum is driving me mad with all these bloody preparations! One would think the Queen was coming for a visit! _

_Anyways, Happy Birthday Harry! _

_Ron_

Setting the letter down with an amused look, he opened Ron's gift to find an assortment of sweets within the package, which he had no doubt were made by Mrs. Weasley.

"Oh, this reminds me, Harry, since things didn't go as I planned today; tomorrow we're heading to Diagon Alley for your real birthday gift."

Harry gave Sirius a confused look. "I thought the whole lord thing was your gift, Sirius?"

"It was, but that was only part of it."

"Part of it?" Harry asked incredulously. "You're joking, right?"

Sirius grinned. "I'm entirely serious. The entire lord thing was more of a necessity than anything else. This gift is more in part of Remus and me."

Remus snorted, raising an eyebrow at the man. "When exactly did I become a part of this?"

Sirius waved a hand at Remus, smirking at the man. "Oh, shut it, Moony. You know you want in."

Remus rolled his eyes at him, but smiled indulgently, nonetheless.

"What exactly is this gift?" Harry asked, his eyes narrowing in apprehension. His godfather was up to something. He just knew it.

Sirius just ruffled Harry's hair. "Don't worry about it, pup. It's only a little something from us both. "

"You said that last time with the Gringotts letter, too, and look how that _little something _turned out to be," Harry pointed out, raising an eyebrow at Sirius.

Sirius waved it off aimlessly. "Technicalities, pup. Besides, this is something that I should have done a long time ago."

Before he could comment any further, Daphne interrupted the two off them.

"Sirius," Daphne called out. "Would it be alright if I were to accompany you to Diagon Alley as well?"

Blinking in surprise at her request, Sirius stared at her for a moment before giving her a bright grin. "Of course you can. The more the merrier. Moony here will be going as well anyways," he told her, turning towards Remus. "Right, Moony?"

Remus chuckled with a shrug. "I guess I am."

"Brilliant. Harry, you don't mind right?" Sirius asked, glancing at Harry.

Turning to Daphne, Harry smiled. "Of course not." He didn't know what it was she needed, but he certainly wasn't going to stop her. In fact, it would probably do Daphne some good to get out some, considering they didn't go out much. Too many fanatics out there.

Clasping his hands together, Sirius grinned. "Well, then we're all set. Tomorrow to Diagon Alley it is."

* * *

After dinner, Remus flooed back to the apartment he shared with Tonks, promising to be here tomorrow for their outing and Sirius turned to his room, muttering about preparations, leaving Harry and Daphne to spend the rest of the evening as they wished, which they spent touring the rest of the manor. By the time they reached the end, the sun had already set, engulfing the world in darkness—the moon and the stars being the only light.

At their final trek of the manor, they winded back up the stairs and to the last door of the hallways where Daphne's room was also located.

"And this is my room," Harry said, opening the door.

Stepping in, the room was simple. With light tans, such as with the large rug placed under the bed, it was similar to her room in design. However, Harry's room held soft browns as well, with the ceiling made of stained, dark wood panels. The dresser and bedside tables were also made of a darker wood than the ones in her room but were as beautifully carved. And his bed, although wide, held no canopy.

Moving deeper into the room, Daphne saw a balcony behind glass paneled doors. Opening them, she stepped outside, lifting her head to feel the cool, nighttime air. Walking forwards, she placed her hands on the railing surrounding the balcony to look up at the night sky.

A sense of nostalgia hit her as she stared at the moon shining brightly against the wide expanse of stars. Caught up as she was in the everyday interactions of Harry's family, she had almost forgotten—she wouldn't have been here if it hadn't been for her father. The thought made her frown. If she had stayed in her room that night as she should have and not ventured to her father's office, she would have never known about his actions—would have been completely clueless—but she hadn't. And she couldn't decide if that was a good thing or not.

In one hand, she would still be back home with her family in the comfort of her own home, yet would have probably been betrothed to someone she didn't love without any way of escape by this time today. With the hand that she has dealt, she escaped the trap, if only for a few weeks, but had made herself vulnerable to those Muggles; her body still had chills about delving in too deeply into that dark abyss in her mind. Only pure chance had lead Harry and his godfather to the exact place at the correct time. Any second later and she would have had the disgusting pleasure of being ripped apart by that awful excuse for a human. It made her grip on the rail tighten in realization.

A drop on top of her hand broke Daphne out of her thoughts. Looking down, she saw the spot where the drop had fallen below her index finger, as well as the ones that continued to fall on the top of the rail. Staring at them with a frown, she raised her hand slowly to touch her cheek, feeling the warm track of tears as they ran down her face.

Feeling a hand on her shoulder, Daphne raised her eyes to look at the concerned gaze coming from Harry's deep, green eyes, the very same as that night as well.

"I don't know why…" Daphne started her voice almost but a whisper as her breath caught in her throat, a single sob spilling out before she stifled it back.

Harry smiled softly, shaking his head lightly, silently conveying his understanding.

Looking back down at her hands on the railing, she barely noticed her arms as they quivered, her whole body shuddering just as she was pulled into a warm, hard chest, two arms wrapping around her back in a tight hug. Harry's scent, so soothing like an intense spice mixed with warm earth, washed over her like a cool breeze after a springtime shower; and as he leaned his head next to hers, murmuring words of encouragement in a low, gentle voice, her arms rose to return the embrace, her hands clutching tightly to the back of Harry's shirt as she rested her head on his shoulder, unable to stop the tears as something inside her broke free—all the pain and anguish spilling out from the proverbial dam as she took comfort in Harry's warm embrace.

In this one moment, she could feel it—his magic as it calmed her distressed soul with waves of radiating power and life as it thrummed just below his embrace. It was intoxicating—the pull from this everlasting entity of magic within him. It reminded her of the reason why people would continually put their faith on a boy to save them from Voldemort's reign of terror.

Daphne had realized long ago the Harry had been under no obligation to follow in these expectations placed on him. Society had placed that responsibility on Harry the day he survived Voldemort's initial attempt at his life. He could have just as easily regarded them as senseless assumptions, and done as any other _normal_ wizard and run away. But there was something different in Harry that propelled him to accept the burden placed on his shoulders—one that many of men would have crumpled under.

Last year, it had all come to a climax when Voldemort decided to attack Hogwarts.

Spells had flown and curses had brought down many. The Wizarding World's finest had all come together to help against his attack, but his forces had shown no signs of backing down. Just when the entire confrontation had seemed hopeless, especially as Voldemort's ominous voice echoed through the school, chanting the words to what was supposed to be a highly destructive spell and gathering all his magic into his wand for this final attack, Harry flew in on his broom, straight into the midst of the army and stopped Voldemort's attack with one, well-aimed spell. The backlash of all that magic being released had wiped out all Death Eaters within the vicinity and drained Voldemort of all his magic, killing him in the process.

The survivors had fled immediately, going back into hiding as word of Voldemort's defeat quickly spread. And Harry, surprisingly, had come out uninjured, but had spent the next two weeks in the infirmary, unconscious. However, she couldn't help but smile at the thought that the same young man who had saved not only her, but the entire Wizarding World was also younger than _her_.

With a relaxed sigh, Daphne loosened her grip on Harry, resting her hands on the topmost of his back as her tears finally died down. And in an unspoken agreement, both of them pulled apart, with Harry's hands moving to rest on Daphne's shoulders.

A smile tugged at her lips as she realized how _easily_ it was to let Harry touch her. A victim of repeated attempts at her body, she had thought she would never be able to trust a man to enter her personal space without shirking from their close proximity in disgust. But here she was, completely enjoying these close moments with Harry, unexpected as they may be.

Tilting her head up to look at him, she saw his eyes gleaming with worry and concerned curiosity, expressing his clear want to ask her about her breakdown. But he stayed silent, refraining himself from doing so as he waited for Daphne to show some sign that she was alright.

With a small chuckle, Daphne smiled brightly; uttering words she should have said a long time ago, "Happy Birthday, Harry."

Harry blinked in surprise for moment, caught speechless with her sudden exclamation, before he shook his head, chuckling in disbelief. "You are the most perplexing girl I've ever met," he muttered lowly, his hands coming up to cradle her face, as his thumbs wiped away the last vestiges of tears from her face. "But thank you."

Daphne nodded with a smirk. "You're welcome. Are you ready for tomorrow, Mr. Potter? It's bound to be an interesting day."

"I don't doubt it, Miss Greengrass," Harry agreed, his lips pulling up into an amused, easy smile. "With Sirius leading it, who knows what will happen."

His words brought a snort of laughter from Daphne as she looked up at him and brought her hands up to cover over Harry's, turning her head slightly into the hand over the left side of her face.

With gentle eyes, Harry sighed leaning in to touch their foreheads together. "Daphne—as much as I would like to know, you don't have to tell me anything," he said soothingly. "But please know you're not alone in this."

Daphne smiled happily, for once the weight on her shoulders lifting just slightly. "I know," she assured him, her voice tender and imbued with all the gratitude that she could possibly convey. "Good night, Harry."

"Good night, Daphne," he whispered lightly, pressing a soft kiss to her forehead.

Giving his hands a tender squeeze, she slowly slid out of his hold, their hands brushing faintly at the end, before she turned with one final smile and strode calmly out of Harry's room. Back in her room, Daphne toed her boots off and, before she climbed into bed, walked to over to the window and pushed it open, letting the crisp night air weave through the room. Huddling under the covers, her thoughts continued to swirl around Harry.

It was an entirely new concept for her—actually enjoying a man's company. She just wondered how long she would be able to enjoy this new experience before she had to return to the reality that was her life back home.

* * *

Staring after Daphne, he hadn't known she would react as she did when he had let her in his room to take a look around. But he had been expecting it to some degree.

When she had woken up yesterday, he had found it kind of strange that Daphne hadn't shown any type of response to the attack. So once she had, it had all came out in a torrent of pain, and reacting on instinct, he had held her, done the only thing he knew to do as she finally let out all her bottled up emotions.

And like some automatic trigger, his heart fluttered, but this time it was different. Like a bolt of electricity, his magic, already wild and erratic as it was, hummed in response to her contact, leaning towards her as if it wanting to lash out of his body and wrap itself around her. The sensation had been completely foreign to him. He'd hugged Cho many times during fifth year, and he couldn't even remember how many times he'd hugged Hermione, but even then neither had made him feel the same way Daphne did.

So when they had finally separated, his magic had been reluctant to let go. He had unconsciously appeased it by keeping as much contact with her as he could.

He didn't know where all of that had come from, but as he laid in bed thinking about it, the blush wouldn't die down from his face.

The next day Harry rose well after the sun, reluctant to start the day that would not doubt end up being another mad scheme by his godfather. Heaving himself off of bed, he showered and dressed quickly, putting on his glasses, some regular jeans and a plain grey shirt with a checkered blue and black button up. His hair although slightly longer, hanging just below his ear and down the nape of his neck, was still its untamable mess, so he left it as is, parting it to the side slightly to keep it out of his eyes.

Grabbing his wand, he stuck it in his pocket before making his way out the door and down into the kitchen where Sirius and Daphne were already seated at the table eating breakfast. Taking a seat right across from Daphne, he gave her a quick, questioning glance. She seemed a lot better today—stunning even, with the deep set blue of her dress bringing out her eyes and contrasting beautifully with her fair skin. It made him wonder how he could have gone the past six years without noticing how breathtaking Daphne was. Thinking back though, he hadn't noticed much of anything; his senses had all been focused on staying alive.

Catching his look, Daphne returned it with a small smile, silently reassuring him she was fine. Mollified, Harry nodded minutely so only she could see, starting quickly on his own breakfast.

After they were all finished, they flooed into the Leaky Cauldron, where Remus was already waiting for them. Briefly greeting the barman and ignoring the hushed whispers and stares, they walked to the back of the shop, stopping to let Sirius tap the combination on the bricks with his wand and watched as they parted to show the bustling streets of Diagon Alley.

"So, where to Sirius?" Harry asked, turning to raise an eyebrow at his godfather, who by now was already grinning like a maniac.

"Why, to Gringotts of course," Sirius informed him. "Need to pick up a little something before things really get going."

Harry frowned. There was that phrase again—_a little something._ He was beginning to realize how foretelling that statement could possibly be when spoken by his godfather. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted Daphne giving him an amused look. "What are you smirking at, Miss Greengrass?" Harry asked her in a hushed tone as they walked towards the bank, following after Sirius and Remus.

"At you, Mr. Potter," she admitted, replying in the same subdued voice. "One would think you were being punished with the looks you keep giving Sirius."

"Am I being that obvious?" Harry asked somewhat incredulously, reaching up to touch at his face.

"Oh yes, and it's very entertaining to watch," Daphne chuckled, grasping a hold of the hand at his face, bringing it back down to lay at his side.

She shook her head at him, rays of sunlight catching her hair and giving it a pleasant golden sheen. "Harry, he's your godfather; whatever he has planned, he has your best interest in heart. So stop worrying about it."

"Yeah, but Daphne, you saw what happened last time," Harry reminded her, slightly tightening the hold he still had on her hand. "The man practically gave me everything under his name!"

"Yes, he did," Daphne said placatingly. "But it didn't change anything other than you now having access to everything he owns, since he still has the same option."

"But Daphne…" Harry began to explain before she interrupted him with a chuckle.

"Face it, Harry. It's a win-win situation for both parties, so stop being in such a narky mood about it," Daphne smirked.

Harry frowned, not having anything to come back with that. It made sense, but it just seemed a bit unnecessary to him since the Potter vaults had more than enough money to support him—and the rest of Britain!—for the rest of his life. He couldn't even begin to think what one would do with all that wealth.

"Just humor him today, Harry," Daphne said simply. "It seems like he really wants this for you, whatever _it_ is."

Harry sighed, unable to deny that. "I know," he admitted grudgingly. "I—I just don't want him to make it too…"

"Extravagant?" Daphne offered.

Harry nodded as they entered Gringotts, feeling strangely helpless at the moment. He was probably overreacting—even with the whole Lord thing—but he was already happy living with Sirius in Black Manor. He really didn't need his godfather giving him anything else.

"Extravagant or not, Harry, Sirius probably feels he owes it you for spending so many years in Azkaban when he should have been taking care of you, as a proper godfather," Daphne informed him. "And I think this is his way of catching up, so to speak, with all those years."

"But I've already told him that I don't care about all of that. All that matters is that he's here now," Harry groaned.

"And that's wonderful, Harry," Daphne agreed, with a small smile. "But Sirius is a Black; and even though they have a reputation for their less-than-sane attributes, they have also been known to take their familial roles very seriously, including obligations that come with being a godparent."

Harry couldn't help but at sigh at that. Now he was starting to feel like an ignorant prat. He hadn't known Sirius had grown up with such ideals. Nor that he might so strongly about this.

Daphne tugged at this hand. "It's alright, Harry. Just let him have his fun today. Who knows, it might not be as bad as you think," she told him with a small chuckle.

Before he could respond, a bright flash of light made them both stop in their walk, a high, frilly voice entering his ears—one that he could recognize anywhere after all the social torment she'd put him through.

"Mr. Potter, what a pleasant surprise!"

"Rita," Harry drawled in a flat voice, unconsciously placing himself in front of Daphne. "I would agree with you, but I'd be lying, wouldn't I?"

"Oh, Mr. Potter, such humor you have!" Rita exclaimed with a small giggle, although the tightness in her smile betrayed her good feeling. "A charmer with the rest of the ladies, I'm sure. And speaking about ladies, who is this _lovely_ young friend of yours, hmm? Someone we should know about? Perhaps—a new love interest?"

Harry narrowed his eyes, already knowing what her devious mind was up to as he saw her quick-quill pen scribbling along like mad right next to her. "She's a close friend, and if you wouldn't mind, we have somewhere to be."

Taking back Daphne's hand, which he had released to cover her from Rita, Harry led them straight into Gringotts, quickly pushing past the nosy woman.

"Harry! There you are! Remus and I were wondering where you and Daphne had gone off to," Sirius exclaimed as they entered the bank. Remus was standing right next to him, looking rather amused as he spotted them.

"Sorry, Sirius. We had quick encounter with Rita on our way over here."

Sirius grinned. "That's alright, Harry. But now that you're here, this," he said, handing him a small, black suede box, "is for you."

Looking confusedly at the box, Harry let go of Daphne's hand, completely missing the shared look between Sirius and Remus, as he gently lifted the top open. Inside, resting delicately on soft black cloth was a badge about half the size of a Prefect badge; a stunning piece made of dark bronze, it had two swords crossing under the armor head of a knight and a small raven with its wings spread as if in midair under the swords. However, what baffled Harry were the words inscribed at the very bottom of the badge—_Toujours Pur_. They were the words to the Black family motto. Yet, the badge didn't match the Black family crest.

Harry frowned, looking back up at his grinning godfather. "Sirius, what exactly is this?"

"That, Harry, is the new Potter-Black insignia," Sirius informed proudly.

Surprised, Harry looked back at the badge, a thought occurring to him. "Is this what you had to take care of yesterday?"

Sirius nodded, looking rather pleased with himself, before a rueful look appeared on his face, the smile vanishing. "I had it made the day your parents named me your godfather. Originally, I had planned to give this to you when you entered Hogwarts. But—well, that didn't really work out."

With Daphne's words from earlier resonating in his mind, Harry's eyes softened, his heart lurching at the regret swimming in Sirius eyes. Throwing his arms around Sirius, Harry embraced him in a fierce hug, hoping in some way to relieve the turmoil he hadn't known had still been resting inside Sirius from his time in Azkaban.

"Sirius…" Harry started, pausing to come up with the proper words to comfort his godfather. "I know you would have wanted for things to have turned out differently, but I really couldn't have wished for more. So, thank you—for everything." Releasing him from his hold, Harry smiled at his godfather.

Sirius shook his head, a warm smile appearing on his face. "No, thank you, Harry," he insisted, returning his embrace from just before with a one-armed hug.

Happy to see the joyous glint back in his eyes, Harry shifted his gaze back down to the box in his hand. He was about to close it to put it in his pocket before a slender hand stopped him from closing the box.

"What's wrong?" Harry asked, turning to Daphne.

Daphne shook her head. "You're supposed to put it on, Harry."

"Oh." Harry looked at Sirius for confirmation and seeing him nod with an enthusiastic gleam in his eyes, he shrugged. Gently lifting the badge from its case, he placed it on the left side of his chest. And to his utter surprise, before his eyes the badge went straight through his clothes and felt it as it entered his body. Not a second later, he saw it stitched on his shirt as if it had been sewed on since the very beginning.

Completely stunned, he couldn't stop the look of shock that appeared on his face. "What just happened?"

"The insignia linked itself to your magical core, Harry," Daphne informed him with a chuckle. "It allows you to interchange clothes without having to worry about its location—works really well against line theft."

Shaking himself out of his stupor, Harry sent Daphne a confused look. "Line theft?"

"I take it, then, you don't know what a family insignia is for, do you, Harry?" Daphne demanded.

"I thought it was just a family crest of sorts?" Harry said hesitantly, turning to Sirius and Remus. "Isn't it?"

"Yes," Sirius started of slowly, "but not in the way you might be thinking, Harry."

Daphne nodded in agreement. "An insignia, Harry, along with the ring, is what officially recognizes the family head of house," she informed him. "As an heir, you would have first received the insignia from your godfather the day you turned eleven, when your magical core finally stabilized enough to support its link. It would have officially designated your status as heir in the eyes of the rest of the families. The ring, which you already know, is only given when the previous lord is unable to continue in his responsibilities as head of house and once your magical core had reached stable maturity at the age of seventeen."

Nodding in understanding, Harry looked at his godfather. "Is this why you wanted to come to Diagon Alley today—for the insignia?" he asked, the thought that he had been worried over nothing already filling him with relief.

Sirius grinned. "Partially, yes," he answered vaguely, a mischievous glint back in his eyes.

Harry's relief disappeared instantly, the look his godfather was sporting returning the apprehension he had been feeling since yesterday. "This isn't all we came for, is it?" he asked somewhat fearfully.

His godfather laughed. "How easily you forget, pup," Sirius told him with a smirk. "Don't you remember? I only had to pick up little something here at Gringotts before we really got busy. And now that we have," a pointed look towards the insignia on his chest, "the fun can get going."

Harry groaned, faintly registering the chuckles coming from Remus and Daphne, as realized that _a little something_ was something he should really watch out for from now on.

* * *

Author's Note: I'm still not too satisfied with the chapter, but I decided not to fiddle with it anymore. As I've said in my profile, it's sometimes really difficult to project the idea I have in my mind. But things have been getting better, and now that my outline is becoming clearer as I keep writing, it hasn't been as frustrating.

To the one reviewer who brought up Daphne's lack of reaction, I hope my way of addressing to that issue was satisfactory.

I hope you all enjoyed the chapter! Until next time! :)


	4. Foreigner

Okay guys, this is just a heads up. There's someone new that's about to be introduced and is mostly the reason why this story is under 'M,' as you are about to read. But just so we're clear, this is most definitely not going to turn into a multii paring. It is strictly Harry/Daphne.

So, with that out of the way, let's get on with the story.

* * *

Chapter 4: Foreigner

Before they could depart from Gringotts, Harry and Daphne had asked to make withdrawals from their personal vaults, much to the displeasure of Sirius' patience. Both teens had just snickered at his pout, and Remus had shaken his head in disbelief; one would have thought Sirius was the one receiving the gift today. However, the teens returned shortly; and the group was able to leave not long after.

"Let's go Harry! Get a move on!" Sirius exclaimed as he walked swiftly ahead of them with Remus not too far along, walking at a much more sedate pace.

"I'm going, geez," Harry muttered under his breath. "Why did I even decide to wake up today?"

"I think I remember something about you deciding to humor him," Daphne reminded Harry as she stepped in beside him.

Harry snorted. "Oh yeah, that's why"

"Yes," Daphne laughed softly. "And you're doing a fine job of it, Mr. Potter; just be sure to keep it up."

"Why would you say that, Miss Greengrass?" Harry asked her, his voice somewhat suspicious.

Daphne grinned but gave nothing away; instead she shifted her gaze towards the ringleader of this madness. "Hey Sirius," she called out, making the man turn to look at her, "would it be alright if I met you guys back at the Leaky Cauldron? I have a small purchase to make in one of the shops." Harry's eyes widened as he realized what she was up to.

Remus and Sirius looked at each other and shrugged. "I see no problem with it; we can meet up at lunch time," Sirius agreed with a small nod.

"Thanks, Sirius." Daphne made to leave, but was stopped as Harry shot his hand out to grab at her arm.

"You're just going to leave me alone with him?" Harry whispered quite frantically, making Daphne chuckle in amusement.

"Very cute reaction," she commented, bringing a flush to Harry's cheeks. "But don't worry; I'm leaving you in Remus' perfectly capable hands."

"Remus? Daphne! Remus is more than likely to agree with Sirius at this point! He's walking right alongside the man for Merlin's sake!" Harry pointed out.

"Really? I don't see that."

Harry scowled. She was being ignorant on purpose.

"Come on, Harry." Daphne gave Harry a comforting pat on his cheek. "Just remember to use that Gryffindor bravery and you'll be fine. Now, if you will excuse me, I have to go," she smirked before slipping out of his grasp.

"Traitor!" Harry called out just loud enough for her to hear.

"Slytherin!" she sang back matter-of-factly, before disappearing within a crowd of people.

Harry threw up his hands in disbelief. "Left alone to face the foreboding lion. Great," he muttered.

"Harry! Any day now!"

Cursing under his breath, Harry jogged to catch up to Sirius and Remus, whom had walked quite a bit ahead while he had been distracted.

* * *

Finally at her destination, Daphne smiled fondly. It was a quaint little jewelry shop that went unnoticed by many, but sold some of the highest quality pieces found in Diagon Alley. She had often visited the shop with her mother before her death.

The proprietor of the shop, a gentle, old man with sky blue eyes, looked up as Daphne entered the store. "It's been a long time since I've seen you in my shop. Why, look how much you've grown! You look like an exact replica of your mother, Daphne!"

"It's good to see you too, Andre," Daphne greeted with a warm smile. "How have you've been these past few years?"

"Oh, I've been just dandy, deary; even better now that I've caught sight of a familiar face," Andre responded fondly. "How is it that I can help my favorite customer today?"

"I'm looking for a gift for a close friend of mind. He just recently celebrated a birthday," Daphne replied with a small smile.

"Oh, a boy you say," Andre hummed, his eyes twinkling. "I think I know just the thing."

Shuffling to the back of his shop, Andre disappeared for a moment behind a drapery covered doorway, before reappearing with a small display of necklaces. "I've been saving these beauties for a special occasion and your presence here tells me today is just the day, Daphne."

Placing the display on top of a glass case, Andre waved her over so she could see. "They were one of the few pieces I had the pleasure of coming across while traveling through Africa and several parts of the Middle East; made by the some of the most skilled craftsmen at the time, they were."

Admiring the pieces, Daphne would definitely agree. Made of a variety of different precious metals and gemstones, the detail on these necklaces was extraordinary; the amount of work that must have been put into creating them must have been phenomenal. However, the one that caught her eye was a modest silver chain with a smooth, black onyx fang as a pendant. It was attached by an equally silver clasp on the top half of the gemstone and inlaid with a small, beautiful emerald. For some reason, she felt a sublunary aura to it that together reminded Daphne eerily about Harry's animagus form.

"I see one has already captivated those sharp, blue eyes of yours," Andre pointed out with a broad smile, gently lifting the necklace Daphne had been just looking at.

"How much is it, Andre?" Daphne asked, her eyes still transfixed by the alluring necklace.

"For you Daphne, I am willing to part with it for 100 galleons."

Daphne looked up in surprise as she had been expecting to pay a higher price. "Andre, are you sure? Haven't you been saving it for quite a while?"

The old man chuckled. "Yes, I have; but just the thought that it was this piece caught your eye tickles my stomach to no end, Daphne. You see, this particular piece has a very resounding history; which you must forgive an old man for not being able to reveal at the moment," Andre concluded with twinkling eyes.

Daphne didn't really understand his reasoning but accepted the price happily. Andre then wrapped it up nicely in a small box before giving it to Daphne.

Once in her hands, she smiled. "Thank you, Andre. This is absolutely perfect."

Andre shook his head fondly. "No thanks is needed, Daphne. It's always a pleasure having you in my shop."

Nodding graciously, Daphne turned to leave.

"Oh, and Daphne," Andre called out just before she left, "If everything works out with that boy of yours, do stop by again. I'll be more than willing to reveal the necklace's history then."

Somehow, the implications behind those words had the heat rising in Daphne's cheeks. "Alright, Andre, until next time," she agreed good-naturedly before waving good-bye to the quirky old man.

* * *

"So, where are we going Sirius?" Harry asked finally, caving into his curiosity after debating whether or not he actually wanted to know.

Sirius grinned vaguely but said nothing.

"Not even a name?" Harry prompted, his curiosity increasing in degree.

"No dice, pup. If I tell you now, it'll ruin the entire surprise."

"Haven't we had enough surprises for the week?" Harry scowled as he remembered yesterday's delightful surprise.

Sirius laughed. "But it's the best part!"

"It's really not all that bad, Harry," Remus admitted.

Harry's eyes narrowed in realization. "I knew it! You're in on this too! I told Daphne you would be of no help! But she wouldn't listen!"

Instead of being insulted, Remus gave a hearty chuckle at that. "It seems like you and Daphne are getting along very well."

Harry looked at Remus oddly. "Well, yeah. Why wouldn't I?"

Sirius ruffled his hair. "No reason, pup. It was just a pleasant observation."

Confused, all Harry could do was raise an eyebrow at them both as he continued to follow them to wherever it was they were going to. Unbeknownst to Harry, the two men smirked at one another.

Letting his eyes roam around, Harry noticed as many people gawked and stared at him from many of the shops. There were also people craning their necks as they tried to get a view of his profile. And after six years of this treatment, he was already used to it; but it was as he caught the eyes of many of the witches, that he had trouble understanding their reactions. Every time they'd turn to look at him, they would blush and turn away, giggling amongst themselves. For no seeming reason! The entire situation was utterly frustrating.

Attuned to his thoughts, Harry missed the young witch coming his way, bumping into her and making her drop the small box in her hands.

"Oh, sorry…" he apologized quickly as he bent down to pick up the now overturned box, when a soft hissing caught his attention.

_§Filthy human! Why have you woken me from my slumber?§_ Surprised, Harry saw as a small, ebony black snake slither out from under the box; its golden amber eyes glistening with annoyance.

_§Sorry, little one. It was my fault.§_ he hissed back at it, hoping to placate it quickly.

The snakes eyes widened minutely in surprise. _§A true speaker? I had not known there were any left in this existence. Tell me human, are you the only one?§ _

Harry winced as he nodded at the snake, remembering the only other person who had spoken Parstletongue. _§From what I know, yes; I am the only one.§_ he responded.

Its serpent body curled up in disappointment. _§Pity. This human infested world could use many more like you, speaker.§_

Smiling sympathetically, Harry gently lifted the snake of the ground, letting it curl around his right arm as he picked up the box with the other. Making sure he had a good hold it, he then coaxed the serpent back into the surprisingly, thick-padded box. The snake hissed in reluctance but settled in quite comfortably.

Satisfied, he stood to return it to its owner and was met with wide, almond-shaped brown eyes, haloed by long, pitch-black hair. "Sorry about that," Harry smiled apologetically, holding out the box. "I wasn't watching where I was going."

The witch smiled lazily, raising her arm automatically to grab the box; her olive tan contrasting against his lighter complected skin as her fingers brushed just slightly against his. "That is quite alright. I am also at fault for not paying attention; I apologize."

Her voice was smooth and sensual as she spoke—a slight, almost undetectable accent to it. And even though she looked about his age, she had this refined sophistication he had only ever seen in some of the older Pureblood witches. "I am Nakhti Nefertari. Who is it that I am to thank the ruling gods for having had the pleasure of meeting today?"

Harry was glad that his hair was covering his forehead at the moment. There was a fascinated glint in her eyes that had him reluctant to reveal who he was. Even though in the end, he knew he couldn't lie. "Harry Potter, Miss Nefertari."

Immediately, her eyes followed the all too familiar movement to his forehead, flashing in recognition.

"Nahkti is fine with me, Harry," she told him, a smoldering smile turning up her lips. "May I call you Harry?" she asked, sauntering close into his personal space, making him notice the unusual style of her clothes.

She was wearing a seemingly normal long-sleeved dress that did the perfect job of hugging all the definite curves of her body; it had long slits on each side, making it loose from the start of her hip and down to the top of her knees, letting him see the same-material trouser she had on underneath.

He wouldn't lie; the overall look was appealing to the eyes, especially the way that the light blue of her attire complimented the tone of her skin. But, along with the accent and the unusual name, it made him realize he was probably speaking to a foreigner. And an important foreigner at that, if the fine embroidery down the middle of her dress was anything to go by, entwined with many blue crystals as it was.

Harry's eyes jerked back up from his perusal of the witch's outfit to her face when he felt a slender hand next his left bicep. The fact that she he could practically feel her breath at the base of his neck almost made him step back in surprise, but he was able to refrain from embarrassing himself with his inattention.

"Um, yeah, Harry is fine with me," he was able to cover up quickly.

Nahkti smiled appreciatively, not noticing the slight pause before his answer, or if she had, she showed no signs of it. "I have heard many things about you, Harry," she continued, lightly gliding her hand up the length of his arm as she did so, "And I have to say, I am truly honored to have finally met the man behind the legend."

The look in her eyes as she followed the trail of her hand, an almost intense hunger if he could call it that, had him raising an eyebrow at her close scrutiny.

Grabbing it before it reached the side of his neck, he let it fall back gently beside Nahkti's side, missing the stunned expression on her face as he did so. "Thank you. I appreciate the thought. But if you'll excuse me, I have to go." With that, he threw her a quick smile and swiftly strolled right past her, not once turning to look back.

As attractive as Nahkti was, Harry had no desire stay any longer than necessary with her. The unrecognizable gaze to her eyes had his magic churning uncomfortably.

Searching around, Harry quickly caught sight of Remus and Sirius not too far ahead, about to enter a shop. Hurrying over, he made it in time to see the proprietress of the shop come out to greet them; a diminutive woman with red hair a shade darker than the Weasley's signature color and kind, gray eyes.

"Sirius, Remus such an honor to welcome you in my shop again," she nodded politely towards the two men. "What may I help you with today?"

Harry tuned them out as his eyes roamed over the inside of the small shop. He could only guess it was similar to Madam Malkin's in business as there were bolts and bolts of fabric everywhere; on shelves, on walls, on tables; and entire menagerie of it.

Gliding his hand through some of the columns of fabric, Harry was awed by the amount variety of colors and textures he hadn't known existed. This made him wonder if there was a difference between Madam Malkin's and this shop.

Just as his hand passed over the last bolt in the column, he stopped.

"Wow," he whispered, enraptured by the texture. Obviously, he didn't know what the fabric was, but it was the smoothest thing he had ever felt, flowing over his fingers like water.

"Taken a liking to the material, pup?" Harry turned to see Sirius staring at him with an easy grin on his face while Remus and the proprietress kept on speaking to one another at the center of the shop.

"Yeah," Harry answered, looking back down at the silky fabric he had pinched between his thumb and forefinger. "It's amazing."

"I don't doubt it. Tiers has always been known for specializing in top-quality outfitting. But I don't think I've ever seen a material like this before," Sirius commented. "I'm guessing its part of a newly developed line."

"You've been here before?" Harry asked curiously.

"Oh yeah, loads of times. This is where your father and I used to get outfitted for our own clothes."

"Ah." That would explain why he had never heard of this shop before. Tiers was probably an upper-scale establishment for all the well-off families. And both the Potters and the Blacks have always been good in that category. Just as that though entered his mind, his eyes widened as the entire situation seemed to dawn on him. He was lord of both of those lines. And Sirius had just dragged him into a clothing outfitters shop meant for obscenely rich families. Bloody fantastic.

Sirius laughed, catching the expression on his godson's face. "I see you finally figured out the surprise."

Harry turned towards him and crossed his arms over his chest. "Sirius, I don't need new clothes. What I have now is perfectly fine."

"What you have now are hand-me downs, Harry. I wasn't been able to do anything about it before because of the war. But now that it's over and I can, I want you to enter your last year of Hogwarts as you should have; as an heir to a respectable family and as my godson. You're a lord now and due for a massive wardrobe change."

And staring at Sirius, Harry could only sigh because, grudgingly, he had to admit the man was speaking the truth. He just didn't have to like it. "Alright, Sirius, you made your point; I guess I do need new clothes. But does it have to be here? Can't it be somewhere…I don't know…cheaper, per chance?"

Sirius raised an eyebrow at him. "Weren't you telling me yesterday you had no idea what to do with the money you have?" he asked amused.

"Yeah, but…" Harry trailed off, not quite sure how to explain his dilemma.

"It's what you father would have wanted, Harry," Remus supplied from his spot next to his godfather. He had finished speaking with the proprietress and had walked over to where he and Sirius were.

Harry chuckled, "Remus, why must it always be you that brings up my dad? You really know how to wear a wizard down." Then he looked over at his godfather. "Okay, let's get this torture over with."

"That's the spirit, pup!" Sirius beamed. "Is everything ready, Remus?"

"Yes, all Ellen needs is to take Harry's measurements."

"Well then, let's go."

Stepping on to a raised dais, Harry did as he was told as Ellen, the proprietress, got started. Sirius, in the meanwhile went on listing all the things Harry would need; trousers, tunics, robes, cloaks, etc. He even threw in some muggle wear.

Once the measurements were taken, Ellen draped some of the cloths across Harry's shoulder to see how they matched with his coloring. This went on for quite some time as Sirius and Ellen debated on the finer details of the fabrics; mostly the color itself, as there were more greens than reds, much to Remus' and Harry's amusement. But most of the decisions were left up to Sirius with his upbringing as a Black.

"And to think, this will all be just in time for Bill and Fleur's wedding," Sirius commented as they went up to pay the bill. "Aren't you glad you have me as a godfather, Harry?"

"Over the moon," Harry chuckled and then a sudden thought occurred to him. Smiling thoughtfully, he turned to the proprietress. "Ellen, would you be able to make something for a friend of mine without me having to bring her here? I kind-of want it to be a surprise," completely missing the knowing smirks from both Sirius and Remus.

"That can be arranged. Did you already have a specific material in mind, Mr. Potter?"

Harry grinned. "Yes, I think I do."

Afterwards when they left, Sirius was not the only one with a lighter purse.

On their way back to the Leaky Cauldron, they passed Flourish and Blott's; and after debating it for a while they decided it would be best take advantage of their outing to purchase Harry's books for the new school year. As an afterthought, Harry added Daphne's books to their purchase. He might not know how long she would be staying with them in Black Manor or what it is that brought Daphne to them; but as long as she was, he would help ease as many worries as he could.

Once done with their little detour, the group headed back to the Leaky Cauldron where Daphne was already waiting for them, sitting at one of the tables in the far side of the pub. She spotted them as they entered and waved them over. Harry went directly to her and took a seat right next her.

"As bad as you thought?" Daphne enquired once she saw how Harry sank into the chair. He had his right arm extended across the table and his head resting on top of his left forearm.

He grunted incomprehensively but said nothing else, tacitly conveying his weary mood. Rolling her eyes at his childlike behavior, Daphne placed a small box she had resting in her lap on the table and gently slid it over to Harry's side, purposely letting it touch his arm.

Lifting his head in surprise, Harry raised an inquisitive eyebrow at her. In response, Daphne merely smiled, wordlessly telling him to open the box with a slight tilt of her head. With a confused frown, Harry did just that; and immediately after seeing what the box contained, turned to Daphne with a completely flummoxed expression.

Sirius and Remus, who had arrived shortly after Harry, looked on curiously; they wanted to know what was going on but had been amused enough to not be willing to interrupt their silent interaction.

Daphne smiled reassuringly. "Happy Birthday, Harry. It might be a day late, but I hope you like it."

Looking back down at the gift in his hands, Harry gently lifted the necklace from its case to his hands, opening his mouth to respond but no words would come out; he was still speechless in amazed wonder.

"It's incredible," Harry was finally able to say in a loud whisper, his voice filled with the astonishment he felt. "Daphne…you didn't have to-"

"Don't brood over it," Daphne cut off before he could protest any further. "I wanted to. Besides, after everything you've done for me, this is nothing, really."

Harry sighed and then lightly shook his head in amused disbelief. "Thank you, Daphne. It really is beautiful." He turned to her with a thankful smile.

Daphne nodded. "I thought it was fitting since it reminded me of your Animagus form."

"That's it!" Sirius' voice piped up from his spot across Harry just as he had placed the necklace around his neck and catching both of them by surprise.

"What's it?" the two teenagers asked in unison. Remus was smiling as he already knew what was passing through his long time friend's mind.

"Your name, pup! For your Animagus!" Sirius' face was alight with bright accomplishment, finally having found a worthy name for the black jaguar. "Fang! I can't believe I didn't think of it before. It's perfect! What do you think, Harry?"

Daphne and Harry looked at one another, a slight quirk to their lips, and promptly shrugged. "I like it," Harry agreed.

"Excellent. Now, this reminds me. We need to begin getting you faster with your shifting. What if you're in trouble and need to get way quickly? Speed—"

The rest of the group just listened on with half an ear as Sirius kept talking even as they apparated back to Black Manor and began readying for dinner. It was better not to interrupt him once he got going. Things went smoother that way.

* * *

Letting the towel around her body fall to the floor, Nahkti carefully stepped into the wide, marble pool, letting the warm water heat her cool skin as it slowly encompassed her body the deeper she descended. Once at the last step, with the water stopping at her shoulders, she let the soothing oils added to the water do their job, causing her skin to tingle as they began to cleanse her body of all the inane trivialities of the day.

Moving over to the side of the pool where a deep groove was located, Nahkti slowly laid her back against the wall and allowed her body to relax.

Harry Potter—such an enigma he was.

Replaying the memory over in her mind, Nahkti was still stunned at the blithe disregard he had shown to her advances. Many men would kill—and have killed— for such an opportunity with her; yet, _he_ had completely dismissed her without a second thought.

How utterly refreshing, she mused, chuckling in mirth.

When she had portkeyed to Britain in place of her father to finalize simple trading negotiations between their countries, she had not expected to run into its savior. Nor how interesting the confrontation would turn out to be.

She had not been lying when she had said Harry's name was legend. But when her father had initially told her about Britain's so-called savior, she had shown bland indifference. The possibility of an entire country following behind a single boy had appeared foolish in her mind. Therefore, she had put it off as another one of her father's attempts to convince her of marriage.

Yet, seeing the boy personally, Nahkti thought perhaps it was not an over exaggeration on her father's part.

Her body still shivered as she remembered the seductive hiss of Harry's voice as he spoke to her pet; to be lucky enough to find a man with such a gift...just the possibilities had her body shivering in lust! His eyes as well when she had caught sight of them, the color of Osiris himself, had hypnotized her with their intensity. She had encountered many with colored eyes, but she had never witnessed such a deep and startling green.

These wonderful realizations, however, were nothing compared to the intoxicating feel of his magic. With the slightest brush of her fingers, she had been able to receive a hint of the power pulsing under this skin. Her magic had already been reacting to it unconsciously before the contact, thrumming excitedly in her core; but she had not realized that Harry had been the cause of such a tantalizing leak of magic until then.

Nahkti had never gotten addicted so quickly to something in her life. She could still feel lasting residue of his sumptuous energy hours later from when she had glided her hand across that perfectly toned body of his, making her crave more of his ecstatic magic. It made her regret letting him slip away from her grasp so easily. If this was how she felt with just a mere touch of hands, she could only imagine the overwhelming ecstasy she would feel when she finally grabbed a hold of him.

It was all to clear in her mind; her hands roaming over his warm, chiseled chest, his hands at her hips, their bodies slick with sweat as they rocked together in the carnal dance of lovers. His throbbing cock would brush at her inner walls as it rushed into her, reaching deeply within her core as she sat astride his lap and moved with him in decadent synchronization. His magic would penetrate her body, allowing her to experience the erotic rush of primordial energy as it seeped into her, filling her with such glorious pleasure.

Such thoughts had her body squirming in arousal, a familiar ache developing between her legs as the vision became all too clear.

Knowing it would not go away until she took care of it, Nahkti sighed. Sliding her hand down, she spread her legs, allowing herself more room to explore as she stroked at her folds, sucking in a breath when she dipped in two of her fingers. Using her other hand caress her breast, Nahkti's breath quickened as she began thrusting into herself, grounding her hips against her own hand, imagining it was Harry's cock as it thrust into her.

Adding another finger, she panted harshly as her body hummed, the feeling in her abdomen coiling tighter and tighter but burning with quickly rushing release. Stroking harder, she added one last finger, moving quickly within her as the feeling kept building and building. She couldn't understand why, but with only a couple of thrusts, she cried out loudly as wave after wave of numbing euphoria finally exploded within her, every nerve ending in her body feeling as if they had been struck all at once with continuous bolts of lightning.

Panting harshly and with her body still trembling from what was possibly the most powerful orgasm she had ever felt, Nahkti pulled herself out of the pool. Wrapping a towel around herself, she walked back into her room, cursing loudly when she realized how wobbly her legs were. How can this be possible? To lose it so quickly...

"Ados!" she exclaimed loudly.

There was a soft pop and a small house elf appeared. "Yes, m'lady? What can Ados do for young mistress?"

"Tell father I am going on a long vacation," her voice still breathless and hoarse, "to Britain."

* * *

**Author's note**: Yeah, that last part wasn't supposed to be there... at all. Nahkti had always been a part of my plans but never to the degree that I see it evolving to now. So, that actually was a bit of a shocker for me.

Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed the chapter. As always, any questions, comments or concerns, please don't be afraid to P.M. me or leave it as a review.

Thank you! Until next time! :)


	5. Friends

Chapter 5: Friends

The air was nice and crisp in the morning, making the windows of the room opaque with a light layer of condensation. A bright golden sphere, rising slowly from behind the horizon, cast beams of light through the curtains, illuminating the inside of the room. Colors, once dull and lifeless in the darkness, grew more vivid with the passing time as the warm glow of the sun radiated off their surfaces.

But it was on one particular surface, from under a smooth expanse of silk, that a figure stirred. Limbs peeked out from on top as the figure stretched before stilling completely. After a moment, it moved once more and a head of soft golden locks was revealed poking out from under the covers.

With squinted eyes, barely allowing a glimmer of the deep blue orbs hiding behind those pale lids to glimpse through, Daphne yawned lightly before sitting up and slipping out of bed. Walking over to the glass paneled doors, Daphne opened them, inhaling deeply as she allowed the fresh morning breeze to enter the room and awaken her senses. She smiled as she caught sight of familiar figures out in the patio garden.

Circling each other like honed warriors in battle, the two figures, one man, one animal, tacitly kept their distance from one another, eyeing each other up. Then, as if tired of all the waiting, the animal lunged. The man smirked, dodging the strike at the last second and immediately retaliated, sending a minor stinging hex at the animal. The man missed as well as the animal moved to the side just in time.

The battle continued in the same fashion, with neither able to land a hit on the other. To the outside observer, it might have looked like a savage attack of a man who was unlucky enough to put himself in the wild animal's line of sight; but to Daphne, it had become a common sight to see every morning since their return from Diagon Alley a few weeks ago.

With a small chuckle, she turned back towards her room and straight into the bathroom for a quick morning shower. Afterwards, she made her way into the walk-in closet. Choosing a matching set of undergarments and opting for a loose, mid-calf trouser and a white, three-fourths sleeve shirt made of a light breathable fabric, Daphne quickly walked back out, leaving the towel hanging on the doorknob and going barefoot down the stairs. With a wide grin on her face, she rounded the last corner into the living room where the glass paneled doors leading out into the patio were located. Not wasting any time, she pushed them open and stepped outside.

Crossing her arms, Daphne leaned on one of the stone columns of the loggia, watching the duel in amusement as she waited for the two wizards to finish with their morning exercise routine. The massive feline crouched down about to attack. But with a small flick of its ears, the cat's head popped up like an interested child, and turned to look at Daphne, standing from the crouch it had lowered itself in the process. Unfortunately, in that one moment of distraction, a spell landed on his chest, throwing the cat back and making it roll into the shrubbery behind him.

Sirius laughed, twirling his wand in between his fingers. "And that's why you never avert your eyes from an opponent." Branches rustled a bit before the big feline emerged from where it had rolled away, shaking off the dirt that had clung to his body before sitting back to look up at the wizard; its whiskered face looking decidedly put out.

"Better luck next time, Fang," Sirius smirked, patting the cat on top of its black, fur-covered head. Fang growled, using his right, front paw to shove him back, before it bounded over in Daphne's direction.

Daphne's shoulders were shaking with concealed laughter as Fang reached her. His head butted her hip, growling in expectance. Understanding, Daphne sat down, bringing herself to his height, and immediately, he rubbed his head affectionately against her cheek, making her laugh in response as his fur tickled her neck. She raised her arms to run her hands along his muscular body and smiled when his purring grew louder; her fingers sweeping through his smooth, spotted fur. It hadn't been obvious before in the darkness, but all around the spots were a shade darker than the ground color, which was actually a very dark brown.

The first time she had seen Fang in broad daylight, it had completely caught her off guard. She had spent some time exploring his fur for a while after that, which had caused Harry no end of amusement after he had shifted back.

Fang shifted, resting his head on Daphne's lap as she continued to run her fingers through his fur; his tail flickering in delight when they moved to scratch at the spot behind his ears.

Sirius had caught up by this time, blocking the sun as he stopped right in front of them. "Morning, Daphne—perfect timing by the way." Sirius greeted her and then turned a triumphant grin at Fang. "Isn't that right, you big lug?"

The cat looked up for a moment before lazily turning his gaze away and closing its eyes, disinterested; too busy enjoying the feeling of Daphne's fingers grazing through his fur. Sirius just rolled his eyes at Fang's behavior, sending an amused smile at Daphne. "Anyways, if you will excuse me, this wizard is in need of a quick shower."

Daphne smiled at Sirius as he passed, nodding back in greeting. She then looked back down at the jaguar on her lap. With his ears flicking every so often and his tail twitching lightly behind him, Harry was acting like the cat he was. Letting her fingers glide a little farther down the length of his body, her smile broadened as his tail twitched a little bit more wildly in response. Bringing her fingers back up, she then moved them over his head and down the length of his snout and stopping just when she reached his nose.

She smiled mischievously as she caught sight of his whiskers, an idea forming in her head. Passing her fingers lightly over them, she laughed softly as she was rewarded with a tiny twitch of its black nose and the paw at her side. She was about to do it again when the weight on her lap suddenly disappeared, yelping in shock as she was suddenly picked up off the ground. She felt as one arm wrapped around her knees as the other went around her back. Her arms flailed for a moment before latching on to the now human neck that appeared in her line of vision.

"At least warn a girl before pulling a stunt like that," Daphne muttered, piercing Harry with a disgruntled look. She felt the vibrations going through Harry's chest as he laughed in response.

"Sorry, but it was the quickest way to get your feet of the ground," Harry told her, his eyes shining with barely concealed mirth.

Daphne tightened her hold on his neck as he began to walk back into the Manor. "Harry! I'll be fine. It's not even that cold." Harry gently placed her on the sofa in the living room so her back was resting on its left arm before sitting himself down and lifting her feet so they were now on his lap.

"Still, compared to how warm your feet are when you wake up, there's a definite difference." Daphne simply raised an amused eyebrow at him as he conjured a pair of the fluffiest white socks she had ever seen, putting them on her bare feet with a light blanket to cover the rest of her legs. "We wouldn't like for you to end up sick."

"I know." Daphne took the time to look at Harry for a moment. This hadn't been the first time she had gone barefoot outside with Harry making a fuss about it—it was actually entertaining for her to watch. After a full week with them—not counting the days she had been out cold— she had gotten comfortable enough to leave her shoes in her room as she walked about the house.

Back home, her shoes were something she had regularly opted without. But shortly before she had left, which she should have picked up on sooner, her father had begun complaining about her lack of footwear; telling her it wasn't something a pureblood witch like herself should be doing, that only the poor walked without shoes. At that time, she hadn't understood why her father had only then started to comment on it when it had been something she had done ever since she was a little girl.

But thinking about it afterwards, when she had first decided to roam Black Manor barefoot, Daphne had realized it had been because her father had been looking out for any "undesirable" traits had needed to be rid of. It was something every pureblood witch knew to do if marriage negotiations were to be taking place.

Therefore, when Harry had first commented on it, telling her she shouldn't be without shoes outside, a twinge of hurt had gone through her heart, thinking, in that one moment, that Harry had been about to tell her the same. But her fears had been unwarranted as Harry's remark had been purely innocent. She had mentally slapped herself for being so stupid. Now, every time he did, it caused a small flutter in her chest, knowing that Harry was looking out for her and not the image she presented.

Harry tilted his head slightly in question. "What? Do I have something on my face?"

Daphne leaned forward, crossing her arms over her bended knees as she gazed at Harry with tender eyes, a small smile on her lips. "You're something different, Harry."

Harry scoffed, pulling her legs over his lap until her feet were resting next to his left thigh, making her squeak in shock as she fell back so her head was now laying on the soft cushion of the sofa. His arms wrapped around her knees with his chin resting on top of them. "Isn't that just your way of saying I'm strange, Ms. Greengrass?"

"Well, we all know you've always been strange, Mr. Potter," Daphne responded cheekily, using her right elbow to hold herself up. "The question of how strange, though, has always been up for debate."

"How quaint, Ms. Greengrass. And I'm guessing final decision falls to you, doesn't it?"

"Naturally, Mr. Potter."

Both of them chuckled, amused by their own antics. Daphne then smirked at Harry, pulling herself up so she was now eye to eye with him.

"Now, if I am not mistaken, I believe there's a shower calling your name right about now."

Harry chuckled. "Are you saying I stink?"

Daphne wrinkled her nose in dramatic effect. "Spectacularly, if I do say so myself."

She was lying of course. Harry's scent every morning after his workout with Sirius was actually very tantalizing; adding a wild undertone to the already refreshing aroma he exuded. She just didn't think that Harry would like to spend the rest of the day with dried sweat on his skin. He did also workout with Sirius in his human form after all.

Daphne fell back again with an unexpected oomph this time, her feet falling to the floor with a low thump as Harry stood abruptly, smirking down at Daphne as he did so. "Well then, I mustn't displease thy lady any longer."

"Must we forget the warning?" Daphne called out after his retreating form, lifting herself just enough to see as he stopped right at the doorway.

Harry looked back, a suave smile to his lips. "Gryffindor, remember," he retorted before strolling right out of the living room.

Daphne let her head fall back over her shoulders with an amused smile on her face, muttering lowly to herself, "Prat."

* * *

Stepping out of the shower, Harry wrapped a towel around his waist, using another towel to go through his hair as he made his way into the closet. Not caring what he picked, Harry quickly dressed, settling for a t-shirt and a pair of jeans. Moving to stand in front of the mirror just outside the closet, Harry took a look at his hair and didn't even try combing his fingers through it this time—it was hopeless. His eyes then roamed over the rest of his body. The clothes they had ordered from Tiers hadn't arrived yet, so what he was wearing was still a bit loose on him, even after all the alterations Hermione had made to them these past few years. Sirius had said they should be here soon, probably in the next few days or so.

Until then, he was still letting him wear the hand-me downs he had received from the Durselys; although they were to be burned once the clothes came in, or so Sirius said. And Harry had to admit, even though he had been reluctant to accept them, he had never had clothes that actually fit; so he was eager to see how they would turn out.

But as his eyes locked on the pendant resting on his chest, he smiled—Daphne's gift. He didn't understand why, but as weird as it may seem, the necklace felt familiar, like a friend he hadn't met in many years; a comforting presence among a world of chaos if he thought about it. Somehow just like Daphne made him feel, he chuckled inwardly.

Thinking back though, these past few weeks have passed in a fascinating blur. Ever since they returned from their trip to Diagon Alley, he was either training with Sirius on his animagus form or enjoying his time by spending it with Daphne. And it was those times with Daphne that amazed him. They would be taking a stroll through the gardens, sitting down by the pond, watching the gnomes lay siege to the colony of toads by the lily pads, or just reading through their school books as they finished the summer work they had been assigned; and time seemed to fly by.

So much so that Sirius sometimes came looking for them, wondering what they had been doing for so long because dinner was already set. He never would have imagined he'd be able to spend so much time with a person, and then feel like it was never enough time in the day.

Curious, he thought.

His brows furrowed, however, as he realized there was something inside the small emerald—a faint outline of something. But he couldn't grasp the image, as much as he tried. Just then, a faint breeze caught his hair, ruffling it faintly as it passed through the room, making him frown in confusion. He hadn't opened any windows. So where was the wind coming from? He turned to see what the source of the wind was when he heard a small mew.

"What are you doing here, little guy?" Harry muttered curiously.

There, just outside on the balcony was a small, black cat, sitting innocently on the balcony floor; its tail flickering in interest. But it was the cat's spangled red-orange eyes that immediately caught his attention; he didn't think he'd ever seen eyes like that on a cat. Glowing like polished gemstones, they almost pulled him in, coaxing him towards it.

Intrigued, slowly, Harry approached it, being careful not to scare it off. And as he moved closer, he felt it—a continuous pulse emanating from his chest, growing stronger with every step he took, resounding in his head like the pounding of drums in the distance. They increased in their tempo, almost to an impossible to degree as his legs brought him mere inches away from the cat.

Crouching down to its level, the pulsing increased even further, if possible, as he extended a hand, palm upwards, towards the cat. And just as his fingers brushed against its delicate fur, the pulsing ceased immediately, and all at once, it was replaced by an overwhelming feeling of contentment; a sense of belonging spreading through his entire body as the cat mewled softly in response, tilting its head towards his hand, encouraging Harry to pet it further.

It was then that Sirius' voice rang through his room. "Harry! Where are you?"

Startled, Harry pulled back, his eyes blinking in shaken stupor as he turned towards the open balcony doors. But turning back to look at the cat once more, Harry was shocked to find that the cat was no longer there. Standing, he swiveled around in search of the cat, striding forwards to also look over the balcony to see if it had impossibly jumped off.

This was how Sirius found him as his head popped out from the room, followed by the rest of him as he stepped outside. His hair, which he hadn't bothered to dry, was still wet from his recent shower and splattering droplets of water as he bounded over to Harry.

"There you are pup. I just got an owl from—What exactly are you doing, Harry?" The wide smile Sirius had on his face turned into amused curiosity as he stared at his godson, who was bent over the balcony railing, his head craning forwards as much as possible.

Harry turned back towards his godfather, removing himself from over the railing, speechless for a moment as his brain caught up with had just happened. "A cat," he blurted out. "There was a cat here not too long ago. But…it disappeared somehow."

"Huh." Sirius raised an eyebrow. "It probably just ran away while you weren't looking. They are very fast, you know." Sirius grinned, ruffling Harry's already ruffled hair. "Something I'm sure you can relate too, eh pup."

"Yeah, I guess so," Harry murmured, not entirely convinced.

Giving Harry one more amused look, Sirius reached over, wounding an arm around Harry's shoulders as he began walking back into the bedroom. "Come one, pup. There's a letter downstairs that you'll be pretty excited to read."

Minutes later found Harry sitting at the kitchen table with the letter in his hands. Sirius came up behind him with two cups of tea levitating behind him, leaving one in front of Harry before rounding the table and taking a seat for himself across from him. There was silence for a moment as Sirius gave Harry some time to read over the letter.

"Hermione's back?" Harry finally looked up at Sirius, a happy gleam in his green eyes.

Sirius grinned. "Yeah, and it seems she wants to see you at the Burrow immediately."

Harry was excited and somewhat wary. Excited because with Hermione back from Australia, and Ron probably finished with preparations for the upcoming wedding, he could finally see his friends; but wary since he had no idea how they would react to Daphne. For some reason, he really didn't want either of them to think badly of his new friend. He had confidence in Hermione; she had never let him down. Besides, knowing her she probably already knew about Daphne from that blasted article Rita had written.

It hadn't been that detailed. Nor had she really gotten a good picture of Daphne since he had been in their way. But as is Rita's style, it had been grossly exaggerated, implying that he and "this mysterious young woman" have been dating in secret for years. Daphne had actually seemed worried for a couple of days afterwards. He had tried asking her what was wrong even after he told her the rubbish Rita was constantly writing about him, although she had said she was fine. Of course, he hadn't believed her. But, he let it go after a couple of days when the worry in her eyes had disappeared.

He knew Hermione would see the truth behind the article. It was Ron that concerned him. Ron was his friend—his first friend. But, when it concerned Slytherins, Ron was a loose cannon, especially so with the recent end of the war. Harry really had no idea how his friend would react.

"Are you going?" Sirius' voice cut in through Harry's thoughts.

Harry shook his head, ridding himself of any pointless musings, before grinning up at his godfather. "Of course." Hermione and Ron have been there since the beginning—he would have faith in them. "I just need to go tell Daphne."

With that, Harry shot out of his seat to head into the living room where he saw Daphne still lying on the sofa. He stopped mid-way through his call of her name, though, as he realized Daphne had fallen asleep, resting on her side with her back towards the sofa and her long legs stretched out along the length of it. There was a soft smile on her face, her pale blonde hair, swirling in soft curls, spread out behind her; gentle light from outside caught it, giving it a luminescent shine and surrounding her face like a golden halo of light.

Harry's features softened at the serene image. Whatever he was going to say was swallowed back. Carefully moving closer so as to not disturb her, Harry grabbed at the blanket bunched at her waist and pulled it up to her shoulders, deciding to let her continue sleeping.

"Just a little too early for you today, huh, Daphne," Harry whispered, tapping lightly at the tip of Daphne's nose. Her face scrunched up a little, muttering something incomprehensible before falling still once more. Harry chuckled under his breath, amused. "I'm leaving for a bit, so I'll see later you, yeah?" Harry smiled before making his way quietly out of the living room and back into the kitchen.

"Is Daphne not going with you?" Sirius asked, somewhat surprised.

Harry shook his head. "No, she fell asleep. I didn't want to wake her up. And anyways, I still haven't told Hermione and Ron about her."

"Funny," Sirius chuckled. "It feels odd to see you going anywhere without her right now. You two almost seemed to have been stuck to the hip these past few weeks."

"I can't lie and say I don't feel the same, Sirius."

Sirius smiled. "Speaking of the wedding, what you ordered for her…it's coming at the same time as your wardrobe."

Harry's features brightened in excitement. "Really?"

"Yup. I got word from Ellen that it's all ready to go and should be arriving no later than the seventeenth."

"The seventeenth? That's two days away."

Sirius nodded. "It is."

"Brilliant." Harry had grinned happily and started making his way into the floo room. But he stopped right at the doorway, turning towards Sirius with a worried expression on his face.

"Go pup," Sirius laughed, already knowing what was on his godson's mind. "Go see your friends. I'll stay here with Daphne."

"You're not going Sirius?"

"Nah. I'll just see them all at the wedding, anyways. Besides, I'm still knackered from the workout you and Fang put me through. Merlin! I had forgotten I wasn't as young as I used to be."

Harry laughed, thanking his godfather before heading out. Moments later, he was stumbling out of the floo and into a tight hug as slender arms wrapped around his torso.

"Harry! It's been so long! I'm glad you're finally here!"

"I'm glad to see you too, Ginny." Harry smiled warily, somewhat uncomfortable with the way Ginny's breast were pushing onto his chest. "Where are the others?"

"Gin, let a bloke breathe!"

"Ron!" Harry exclaimed excitedly as he saw his friend coming in, still as tall as ever, followed by a familiar head of brown curls. "Hermione!" Breaking out of Ginny's hold, Harry opened his arms just in time for them to wrap around Hermione's waist as she immediately latched on to his neck, hugging him back warmly.

"Harry! How I've missed both you and Ron!" Hermione let go as she smiled up at him, her warm brown eyes conveying the happiness she felt.

"I've missed you both, too." Harry smiled looking alternatively at Hermione and Ron.

Hermione's eyes widened as she caught sight of the added stitching to his shirt. "Oh, Harry! You finally have it. That's wonderful!" moving to hug him once more in congratulations.

"Has what Hermione?" Ron asked curiously from beside her when she stepped back. Harry also didn't know what she was talking about, his eyes silently questioning her as well.

"His insignia, Ronald." Hermione pointed at the spot right below Harry's left shoulder. "Remember, I was worried Sirius would forget."

Ron's face brightened. "Blimey, Harry! Congratulations mate!"

Harry shook his head, a small smile on his face, already knowing how Hermione found out about it and not even having to think why Ron knew of it. "Thanks, guys. But if you already knew, you could have told me about it." It wouldn't have made him feel like a total prat back at Gringotts.

"And ruin the surprise for Sirius?" Ron chuckled. "Believe us, Harry. It was for the best." Hermione nodded in agreement when Harry turned to her.

Harry sighed. "What's done is done, I guess," he said, passing a hand through his hair, inadvertently catching Ginny's attention.

"Harry," Ginny called out, an interesting gleam in her bright, brown eyes, "Did you perhaps receive something else from Sirius?"

Looking at Ginny, he followed her line of sight and stared at his hand in surprise as he had forgotten the rings were there. Harry then adopted a disgruntled expression, "Ah, right, speaking of surprises, you guys wouldn't believe…" Harry trailed off as he saw the expressions on Ron and Hermione's faces—ones that didn't even show a lick of surprise, making Harry narrow his eyes at them. "Don't tell me. You guys knew about this too, didn't you?"

Hermione chuckled. "It's like Ron said—we didn't want to ruin the surprise. It was all in the name of friendship, Harry. Really," she assured him when she saw Harry frown at her.

"Of course it was Hermione," Harry drawled sarcastically, crossing his arms over his chest, although the slight quirk to his lips signaled his forgiveness at his friends' lack of warning.

"Anyway, I'm glad you're here, mate. Seriously, it's a madhouse of sparkles and…and dresses and flowers! You won't believe how bad it's been. There's only so much girly a bloke can take!"

Harry laughed. "I'm sure Ron."

"Oh, stop exaggerating, Ron! It's a wedding. Of course, it's going to get a bit crazy. Things have to be perfect for every bride!"

"Yeah, and leave us guys to suffer through it all!"

"Ron! You're not getting it!"

"Well, of course not! I'm a boy!"

Hermione narrowed her eyes. "Harry understands and he's a boy, Ron!"

"Oi! Don't drag me into this. I just got here," Harry chuckled.

Ron threw a triumphant grin at Hermione. "See, even Harry doesn't want any involvement in this madhouse."

"That's not what he meant, Ronald." Hermione rolled her eyes, throwing her hands up in defeat. "Boys!"

"Come on, Harry," Ron spoke after a short laugh at Hermione's expense. "Let's go upstairs. There's something I want to show you." Ron turned to head upstairs but stopped when he caught sight of Ginny following after them. "You stay here, Ginny."

"What! Why?"

"Because you're a girl."

Ginny raised a non-convinced brow at him. "Hermione's going as she's a girl."

Ron seemed stumped at that realization but recovered quickly shooting Ginny a wide smirk. "She's the exception."

"Exception? On what grounds?"

"My room, my rules. That's all there is to it." Ron finished, crossing his arms with a satisfactory nod. Harry and Hermione were behind him watching in amusement, not wanting to get in between a sibling's quarrel.

Ginny scoffed. "Whatever. I'll just tell mum," she shrugged, shooting Ron a triumphant smirk of her own.

Ron narrowed his eyes, and responded nonplussed, "You tell mum and I'll tell her you sneaked off with the twins yesterday to visit Dean without her permission."

Ginny gasped, blushing bright crimson, shooting Harry a quick glance before stomping away with an angry huff of defeat.

Ron turned back to his friends with a roll of his eyes. "Mental that one," he muttered to them.

"Ronald! She's your sister!"

Ron snorted. "Exactly."

Harry simply laughed.

Once in Ron's room, both Hermione and Ron turned to Harry with expectant expressions on their faces as he sat down on Ron's bed.

"What?" Harry asked.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Don't sit there like you don't know, Harry." She threw over at Harry an issue of the Daily Prophet; specifically the one with Rita's article in it, Harry realized as he caught the paper.

"Where did you have that?" Ron asked lowly to Hermione.

"Don't worry about it Ronald." Hermione shot him a look before turning back to Harry.

"You guys don't actually believe in this nonsense, right?" Both of Harry's friends gave him a flat look. Harry chuckled sheepishly, realizing he had asked a stupid question.

"Harry, we just want to know the truth lying underneath Rita's exaggerations," Hermione told him.

"Yeah, mate. We don't care for the rubbish Rita wrote," Ron added.

"I know," Harry smiled, "I just don't know where to begin."

Hermione gave a sympathetic smile. "Then start at the beginning."

And so he did; about how he found Daphne, who she was, everything. At the end, both Harry and Hermione stared expectantly at Ron.

"What?" Hermione and Harry shared a look. "Ah, come on! Have some faith in a bloke. I wasn't going to say anything just because she's a Slytherin," Ron pointed out once he realized why they were staring. Both of them gave Ron impressed looks before getting back to the subject at hand.

"Does everybody else know?" Harry asked, pointing to the newspaper.

Hermione shook her head. "No, only Ron and I were able to read it."

"I took it before anybody else could see it. They were all too busy with the preparations to notice it gone anyways," Ron added.

Harry smiled gratefully. "Thanks, guys. I don't want anyone forming an opinion on Daphne before they even get to meet her."

"Not a problem, Harry. That's what friends are for," Ron reassured him.

"I'm guessing this means we'll be seeing her at the wedding then?" Hermione asked. Harry's blush was all the answer the two needed. Trust Hermione to already be thinking two steps ahead.

"If you want, you guys could come back with me to meet her. You don't have to wait until the wedding," Harry offered. "Daphne won't mind, really. Although, she's probably still asleep on the sofa where I left her with Sirius," Harry thought aloud at the last part, his eyes growing fond at the reminder of the Slytherin.

It was a look that did not go unnoticed Hermione, if the gaze she threw Ron was anything to go by.

"Nah, that's alright mate. We don't mind waiting like everybody else. Besides, mum still wants me to help her out with the flower decorations...not that the house isn't already filled with the bloody things," Ron told him, murmuring aloud at the last part, earning him a jab at the side from Hermione.

"Not including that last part," here Hermione shot a glare in Ron's direction, "Ron's right. And I still have to head back home to help my parents unpack from out trip. We don't mind waiting, Harry, honestly," Hermione reassured him when she saw he was about to protest.

"Okay," Harry chuckled, knowing there was no arguing with her. "But I'm pretty sure you guys will like her when you finally meet. She's nothing like the guys at Gryffindor tower make her out to be, Ron."

"Believe me, Harry. I'm pretty sure we're not the only ones who are going to be doing the liking," Ron smirked before it turned into a grimace as he received another jab at the side from Hermione and this time a bit stronger.

After a weird look from Harry to the both of them, the conversation then turned to other subjects as the gang caught up, interchanging stories of how these past summer months have passed for each of them and the new experiences they each have acquired. Before they knew it, a couple of hours had gone by, signaled by the ringing of Mrs. Weasley's voice throughout the room.

"Ron! Lunch is ready!"

"I guess that's our queue to head down," Ron muttered as they all stood to make their way to the door. He opened the door to leave just as two identical figures apparated right in front of his path, making him cry in surprise. "Don't do that!" he exclaimed.

The twins merely smiled. "Sorry Ronnikins. It's purely coincidence, you know."

"Yeah, of course it is," Ron snapped sarcastically, throwing Harry and Hermione a disgruntled look when he caught them laughing quietly at him.

"Harry! Good to see you!" The twins greeted. "We heard you were here so we wanted to be the first to say brilliant job."

"Landing a beauty like Greengrass—"

"—is impressive."

Harry chuckled at them, not even asking how they found out about the article. They had their ways. And knowing them, they were probably going with the rumor to tease him. "Daphne's just a friend. She's staying at Black Manor until her situation straightens out."

Both of the twins smirked. "Even better!" they cried in unison before apparating away with a pop.

The trio just shook their heads in bemusement as they made their way downstairs where almost everybody was gathered around the kitchen table as they each began to take their own seats. Mrs. Weasley was the first one to notice them when they finally entered the kitchen. There was a weary look in her eyes, no doubt caused by the stress of the wedding, but she was still filled with her usual bubbly energy as she moved forward to greet the raven-head.

"Harry! So good to see you, deary." She pulled him into a fierce hug, letting him go and quickly checking him over as she continued to speak. "Have you been eating well? Getting enough sleep? Merlin knows that godfather of yours has a tendency to overdue things sometimes."

Harry bristled at her continued lack of trust towards his godfather, even though this was already the third year he was living with the man, but he hid it quickly. "Hello Mrs. Weasley. And yes, I'm fine. Sirius has been doing a very good job taking care of me."

It was thanks to Sirius he even grew as much as he did. He would never be as tall as his father was—who had been close to Ron's towering height—but he had obtained some of the height he would have never gained had he been staying at the Dursleys; Sirius had come in right on time for his last growth spurt. Or at least that's what Hermione told him when he all of a sudden shot up around fifth year.

"That's good, deary. Will you be able to accompany us for lunch?" Mrs. Weasley asked him, and at his affirmative smiled brightly. "Wonderful. All three of you can sit on the other side. I think there's still space over there."

The trio nodded but was nowhere near able to move as Mrs. Weasley's exclamation had already garnered the attention of the rest of the Weasleys—Charlie and Bill—and soon-to-be Weasley in Fleur's case; Mr. Weasley and Percy were still at work at the Ministry, from what Ron told him after all the greetings had gone underway.

At the table, the twins were already sitting at the far end of the table, clearly plotting something as they messed with the utensils until they received a reprimand from Mrs. Weasley to stop. Charlie took the seat beside them, followed by Bill and Fleur. Harry ended up sitting by Ginny and across from Bill and Fleur with Hermione and Ron each taking the seats right next to him. Once Mrs. Weasley sat down, they all dug in, enjoying the meal the Weasley matriarch had prepared for them.

"Harry, dear, congratulations as well," Mrs. Weasley intoned halfway in through their meal. "I see Sirius has finally taken responsibility and gotten you properly recognized."

Harry hadn't known was she was talking about until Hermione had cleared up his confusion.

"Your present from Sirius," she told him, pointing towards his shirt, after seeing his lost look.

Realization passed through Harry's eyes as he turned back towards Mrs. Weasley, a sheepish expression on his face. "Thank you, Mrs. Weasley." Harry then furrowed his brow as he also realized the discreet jab Mrs. Weasley had aimed towards his godfather. He was annoyed by it, but said nothing once again as he understood how traditional Mrs. Weasley could be. And receiving his insignia so late in the game probably went against her traditional view.

He had asked Ron upstairs if Bill had one, to which he answered yes; the truth of it stitched right on Bill's shirt. But neither Bill nor Mr. Weasley had a ring since their ancestors never really got through to having it forged.

"Was that necklace also part of your godfather's gift, 'Arry?" Fleur asked in her French accent, although it had improved tremendously with her time here at the Burrow.

Everyone else also perked up at the question as they had also been wondering about Harry's new necklace, although forgotten in favor over their meals. Hermione was the only one with a knowing look on her face as she realized who the giver of the necklace could have possibly been, if the minute softening of Harry's eyes when he looked down upon the necklace resting around his neck gave her any clue.

"No, it wasn't. Why?" Harry inquired curiously when he saw Fleur looking at pendant strangely.

Fleur shook her head. "No reason in particular. It just seems familiar." The veela turned to her soon-to-be husband. "What do you think, Bill?"

"Hmm," Bill looked up at his fiancé at the mention of his name before turning his gaze towards Harry's necklace. The curse breaker's brows furrowed in thought, tilting his head slightly as if trying to remember if he'd ever seen the necklace before. "You're right, Fleur. It does seem familiar, although I can't really grasp from where. But it is beautiful, though, Harry." Bill smiled at the raven-haired wizard.

"Thank you, Bill. It was a gift from a close friend of mine. She thought it was appropriate, considering my animagus form," Harry informed them with a smile as he remembered that day, stroking at the black fang reverently.

Ginny's scandalized whisper of "She!" was drowned out by Ron's exclamation of "Oh!" as he perked up at the mention of the black jaguar.

"Hey Harry, did Sirius ever find a name for it?" Ron asked, turning towards his best friend. "I remember him complaining about it last time."

Harry chuckled. "Actually, he did. It was at the same time this was given to me," Harry said, gesturing to the pendant he had between his fingers. "He decided on Fang, said he couldn't believe how he hadn't thought about it before."

"Sirius named it after Hagrid's boarhound?" Hermione asked with amusement.

Harry simply shrugged. "I don't mind. It fits, I suppose."

Hermione shook her head. "I guess it does."

Lunch then passed without further interest, although Ginny seemed particularly upset for the rest of it. And Harry was the most confused as all her glares and glowers continued to be aimed at him. He had turned to Hermione in question to see if she could clear up his confusion like she usually does. But she had just laughed softly at him, only adding to his befuddlement as Ron also joined in her amusement.

Afterwards, with Mrs. Weasley's sharp command to fly nowhere near the wedding decorations, all the guys went outside for a game of Qudditch with Ginny in tow, as Hermione and Fleur stayed behind to help Mrs. Weasley clean up the table. Bill ended up playing referee as the teams turned out uneven but evolved into a game of six against Harry as he kept finding the snitch far too quickly for the game to even begin.

By the time they all came in, it was late afternoon and time for Harry and Hermione to head back to their respective homes. Ron and Hermione never revealed why Ginny was so irate with him. But after promising to be back for the wedding, the youngest Weasley had seemed to have forgotten what upset her as she smiled at Harry and told him she looked forward to seeing him at the wedding

And flooing back to Black Manor to see Daphne waiting for him with a book in her lap as she looked up at him with those warm, blue eyes and welcomed him back, Harry wouldn't lie and say he wasn't looking forward to it as well.

* * *

**Author's Note: **Yes! The beginnings of retribution! Ignore that last part-it was purely for my own pleasure. So, the Weasleys are introduced as well as Hermione, finally. I'm just going to say this now and apologize sincerely for any of you readers who have a liking towards Ginny. No, she won't be all out bashed, but I do have to acknowledge her feelings towards seeing Harry with girl other than her. I mean, come on. The girl has held a festering crush for the guy since second year and fantasies of him from her childhood-she's not going to let it go that easily. Beware a woman's scorn, peoples!

Any-who, hope you all enjoyed this new installment-the longest one yet. And, as always, any questions or concerns, please feel free to P.M. or leave it as a review. Thank you!

Oh, and for Sarah Rose, one of my recent reviewers, hope it was a reasonable fix, not that it's in any way perfect, of course.

Until next time :)


	6. Feelings

You guys are so going to hate me.

* * *

Chapter 6: Feelings

_The crackling of wood could be heard throughout the room as it slowly burned; the fire it heated giving off embers of light in the darkness of night. Bright and swirling with energy—it was the only thing that showed any semblance of life. Or at least it seemed that way as the two wizards in the room were silent and pale. _

"_Have they been sent, Nicholas?" Sitting calmly behind the wide, dark wood desk, the blond aristocrat finally broke the silence, his cold and stoic eyes piercing the wizard standing in front of him with a sharp, expectant stare. _

_Nicholas gave a jerk of his head in affirmative, his own dark eyes filled with an almost manic desperation—a foil to the artic grey ones of the blond. "Yes, everything's ready." _

_The naturally pale wizard smirked in pleasure. "Excellent." _

"_And about our agreement—"_

"_Nothing to worry yourself over, Nicholas," the pure-blood drawled. "I assure you; by this time next week, all your troubles will have been a thing of the past."_

* * *

The arrival of Harry's clothing came as an unexpected surprise for Daphne. Not that Sirius' gift had been kept a secret from her that day they went to Diagon Alley—she just hadn't asked, and the subject, weirdly, had never come up these last few weeks. Therefore, entering the kitchen for breakfast, Daphne stopped short as she took in the scene in front of her. With as spacious as the kitchen was, she realized it was a perfect area for it. But she really couldn't figure out what it was. All over—on the counters, on the table, on the floor, and even floating across the kitchen as Sirius levitated them towards different areas—were stacks and stacks of differently sized, white paper boxes.

"Sirius—" Daphne was cut off as she quickly had to duck to avoid being hit by one of the boxes that had been on a one way track towards her head.

"Ah, sorry about that, Daphne!" Sirius called out from his spot beside the kitchen table as he finished placing the same box on top of an already high pile of boxes near the dining room doorway.

Daphne waved it off with a smile. "That's alright, Sirius. But what exactly is inside all these boxes?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at the interesting scene.

Sirius grinned, stopping midway through raising another box to scratch at his head sheepishly. "They're actually all the things—clothes— we ordered for Harry as part of his gift. But I, uh, may have accidently released a certain charm that kept them small and compact, and well…"

Her lips twitched in amusement, not needing any further explanation. But she fought the snicker that was threatening to spill out. "Do you need any help?" Daphne offered.

"Nah, I'm good here, Daphne. I actually have Dobby helping me sort through them, although I have no clue where he is exactly at the moment," Sirius muttered at the end, taking notice of the hyperactive house elf's absence.

A small hand popped out from in between two rows of white boxes to Daphne's right, waving erratically. "Dobby is here, sir! Here!"

"Ah! There you are Dobby," Sirius said, craning his neck to the side to see where the house elf was hidden. Turning back towards Daphne, Sirius smiled. "But if you wouldn't mind Daphne, could you tell Harry to come downstairs. There's a couple of boxes here he needs to personally check over. He already knows they're here, so he'll understand."

Daphne nodded. "Okay, I'll go get him."

"Thanks, Daphn—Wait, Dobby! Not yet!" Sirius called out towards her retreating figure but was forced to duck midway to avoid being hit by the box Dobby had begun to send over.

"Not a problem, Sirius," Daphne murmured, half-chuckling afterwards, knowing Sirius wasn't listening anymore.

Walking out of the kitchen, she wondered, though. The arrival of all those boxes was probably what Harry had been waiting for. These past couple days, ever since he returned from his visit to the Weasley household, Harry had been restless—impatient for something, like a small child anxious for his reward.

It tugged the corners of her lips in remembrance. Harry could be really cute at times.

Reaching the last step, Daphne turned into the hallway only to gasp in surprise as something collided with her. She felt herself beginning to fall backwards, and she shut her eyes in expectation for the pain that would come from the impact. She felt and heard when it happened, as the sound of a something hitting the floor echoed through the hallway, followed by the jarring of her own body. But the subsequent pain that should have also followed never registered. It was then that a familiar scent wafted through her senses, tinged with the sweet smell of shampoo.

_Harry_, she understood as, slowly, she opened her eyes.

The realization only lasted for a split second before the rest of her senses caught up with her and sent her stomach into a jolting, twisting mess of coils; all the blood rushing to her cheeks as she registered the smooth, sleek sensation of warm, bare skin under the palm of her hands and up along her arms. The rate of her heart doubled as she realized that at some point during the fall her blouse had bunched up over her hip, leaving her abdomen exposed to the firmness of Harry's belly, the button of his jeans digging into her lower abdomen.

If it weren't for the intimacy of the situation, Daphne would have chuckled. Maybe it was because for a long time she had thought of men as wolves on the hunt, preying on women with only their own pleasure in mind; but she'd been with him for weeks now, completely aware of the man he was, yet this was the first time she'd ever realized how incredibly _male_ Harry was. Feeling Harry's larger sinewy body on top of her smaller, lightly toned frame had an unfamiliar heat festering in the pit of her stomach. And as she turned her head to snuggle closer into Harry's neck, raising her arms from where were they had latched on to Harry's lower back to rest them against his shoulder blades, pressing herself tighter against Harry's hold, she felt it. Desire—the likes of which she had never felt before—blazing through her veins. Her heart could have just soared with happiness if it weren't already racing. It was exhilarating.

But the realization came with another thought. To see desire brimming in those warm, green eyes—would they ever be aimed at her? Would she even have enough time to find out? The irony of it all didn't escape Daphne. Repugnance—that's what she had felt every time she had caught the lust-filled gazes of other men. Their leering eyes would roam over her body, visualizing her under the clothes she wore, even during the times they would be standing right in front her, attempting to speak to her. And now that she had found the one that would pay sole attention to _her_, would lust ever shine behind those eyes?

Although, the reality of what she just did hit her like a hippogriff.

When she felt Harry tense above her, just as she knew he would have, Daphne was preparing to explain herself in way that wouldn't reveal her feelings just yet, since she really couldn't say to Harry that the urge to hug tighter was caused by a sudden desire for him as a man; that didn't even sound right to her. But she was given the shock of a life time as instead of Harry letting go, he returned the embrace, her body shivering in response as he began to _laugh—_a deep, rumbling laughter that went straight through her spine as she felt the vibrations coming from the belly that was pressed so tightly against her own.

It left her completely baffled. What felt like an eternity was probably a second or two in reality as Harry kept laughing, but she couldn't help but huff in annoyance. What was so funny? Realizing she'd have to wait it out, Daphne instead turned her attention to the slightly tanned column of Harry's neck, inhaling deeply as she could finally distinguish the smell of Harry's shampoo—green apples her mind supplied.

Harry stopped laughing immediately, making her brighten in anticipation but was only met with a strange look from Harry as he finally moved, using his forearms to prop himself up.

"Did you just smell me?"

Daphne frowned. Really, of all the questions to ask. "It's good-smelling shampoo you use," she supplied truthfully.

Harry laughed again, making Daphne huff in frustration. She dropped her hands from Harry's back, turning to slide her legs from under him, but was stopped as Harry immediately sat up, straddling her lower back to keep her from moving.

"Harry! Let me go!"

"Sorry, sorry," Daphne heard Harry say between laughs. "I'll stop, just give me a minute."

Daphne sighed, seeing she had no other choice, dropping her chin to her hand as her pout came back. Although she was annoyed at Harry, she knew she wouldn't last for long; hearing the warm sound of Harry's voice did that to her. And she was right. By the time Harry's chuckles died off, she just wanted to know what had amused Harry so.

She felt the weight on her back disappear and soon after saw a hand enter her line of vision. Daphne took the proffered hand, letting go once she was standing to pat away the light dust from her clothes. Looking up, Harry gave her an easy, lopsided smile, one that she couldn't help but return when it brightened those green eyes of his. "You know, I've said this before, but you really are the most perplexing girl I've ever met."

Daphne narrowed her eyes. "Well, after that little display, I don't know if I should be offended by that or not."

Harry grinned, bringing his hands up in front of him. "It's a compliment, really. I just couldn't help it. You do the most surprising of things sometimes."

"It's not like I mean to," Daphne muttered, crossing her arms over her chest, suddenly finding the hard-wood floor very interesting. _You aren't too innocent of that either,_ she thought, remembering the times Harry had caught _her _off guard.

But you didn't see her laughing about it.

She felt a finger under her chin as Harry lifted it to meet his eyes. There was a warm glow to his eyes that had Daphne relaxing under his touch. "I know." Harry's words were so faint that Daphne had barely heard them before he leaned down. She thought for one second Harry had been about to kiss her, and she couldn't help but feel slightly disappointed when she felt his lips gently press against her cheek. But with it, Daphne was finally able to respond. Before Harry could pull back, Daphne placed her hands on Harry's narrow hips and turned her head slightly, returning Harry's gesture of affection.

"You do realize we're going to have to talk about this," Daphne whispered against his cheek, turning her head back so her lips were near his ear. She knew she didn't have to explain what _this_ was to Harry.

And feeling Harry tense minutely in her hands, Daphne was spot on in her assumption. "Does it have to be now?"

Daphne inhaled deeply, once again catching that sweet, green apple scent as she pulled pack to gaze into those hesitant orbs. "No," she assuaged, knowing she wasn't quite ready yet either. "Not right now, but soon."

That easy smile of his returned. "Alright," Harry accepted, feeling his hand slide gently up the back of her neck and into her hair. He leaned forward once more, his lips grazing her cheek but then stiffened. Daphne was about to ask what was wrong before shivers racked her spine when she felt Harry's breath tickling down the length of her neck. "You're right Daphne." He chuckled.

"About what in particular?" Daphne asked, eternally grateful for not sounding as breathless as she felt.

Harry pulled back, a roguish smile on his face. "It is good-smelling shampoo." He gave her a quick kiss on the top of her head before turning to head downstairs, picking up the shirt he had apparently dropped along the way.

Daphne waited until she could no longer hear Harry's footsteps to release a breath she hadn't known she'd been holding. Sliding her back down the wall, she sat on the top stair, bending her left leg and leaving her right leg extended.

"Not cute…not cute at all," Daphne mumbled through her hands as she covered her blushing face with them.

* * *

He had always known that the female body was different. With slim physiques, soft hair, and alluring sweet scents, it was no wonder that the guys in the dormitories were constantly on the subject of girls. Even back in the Burrow, talk would always seem to gravitate towards it. He wouldn't participate, but even he could appreciate the differences. However, with minimal experience of his own and hormones that have probably never fully kicked in, he had always been unable to fully grasp the obsession other boys his age had with the female form.

Reaching the last step, Harry shivered, and it wasn't because he still hadn't put on his shirt. He already knew that there was...something _else _between him and Daphne. He could feel it deep within his bones. There was no denying how everything seemed to work when he was with her. He was just nervous to approach this new dynamic in their relationship directly because he'd never felt like this before. Just now, an emotion he knew had been festering deep within his heart and body had become ever-more obvious.

In his arms, molded perfectly against his body, he would have never thought her touch, and scent would excite his heart to the point where he was beside himself and make him feel a woman could be that lovely. The feeling that had gone straight to his abdomen and the urge to pull Daphne tighter against him had been so strong it had scared him. It seemed like ages ago, but he hadn't forgotten the horrible experience she had gone through when they had first met. His fear stemmed from possibility that it would only remind Daphne of that experience. Just the thought of Daphne going through that anguish again because of him had given him the strength to withhold that urge.

Except Daphne had then obliterated that resolve by hooking her arms over his back and doing exactly what he had been holding back from; he really hadn't been lying when he had told Daphne she was always acting in the most unexpected of ways sometimes—the shock of it all still hadn't worn off. Torn between giddy delight and skin burning embarrassment, the fact that Daphne hadn't pushed him away filled him with overwhelming happiness. But the little reminder that his original intent had involved the soft curve of Daphne's lips didn't escape him either, he thought, a tall-tale blush on his face.

Shaking his head in bemusement, Harry finally put on the red shirt he had in his hand, entering the kitchen to see Dobby helping his godfather go through the boxes as they arranged them in neat little piles all around the kitchen.

"Were you able to find it, Sirius?" Harry asked as he maneuvered through them to reach his godfather.

The entire order from Tiers had arrived early in the morning, right after their workout, while Daphne had still been sleeping. They had been sent through portkey inside a big wooden chest with the Tiers logo on the lid; and on top of the lid, there had been a note from Ellen saying that the box with Harry's special order was the very first one. But in Sirius' over-excitement, they really couldn't tell which one it had been since they had all exploded out of the chest when Sirius un-shrunk all of the boxes _before_ they were out of the chest; hence the accumulation of boxes in the kitchen.

Harry had been about to help put them back on order, but Sirius had sent him upstairs to take a shower, saying it was his responsibility to fix the mess he'd created. He had obliged, not willing to argue with Sirius so early in the morning.

Sirius turned, regarding his godson with a bright grin. "Just now, actually," he replied, picking up a flat, rectangular, blue box from its spot on the kitchen chair nearest his legs and offering it to Harry. "Charmed it a different color so it wouldn't get mixed up with the others."

"Thanks, Sirius," Harry smiled, taking the proffered box. Finally having it in his hands, he gazed at the blue box with equal parts excitement and weariness. On one hand, he really couldn't wait to give Daphne her gift, but in the other, with what just happened, he really had no idea how she would react to it. He was kind of making the choice for her by assuming her answer with this gift, Harry thought nervously.

Feeling a hand on his right shoulder, Harry looked up and saw his godfather smiling reassuringly at him.

"Don't worry about it, pup," Sirius said, his tone slightly exasperated, as if he really couldn't believe Harry was doubting the Slytherin he was practically tied together to. If only he knew why. "She'll love it," giving his shoulder one reassuring squeeze before stepping away and towards the go-lucky house elf. "Alright, Dobby. Do your magic."

Dobby nodded enthusiastically and with a snap of his fingers all of the boxes disappeared; the kitchen returning to its pristine, uncluttered condition.

Harry raised an impressed eyebrow at the now box-free kitchen. "Wow, you and Dobby work fast."

Sirius scoffed, giving Harry an incredulous stare. "Did you really doubt your dear ole' godfather, Harry? I'm hurt," Sirius cried, clutching at his chest in mock pain.

"As a matter of fact, I did," Harry smirked. "Thought you would take forever to get things organized." He really wasn't lying. With his godfather's constant complaining, Harry thought it would take hours for Sirius to sort the boxes by article of clothing and footwear for Dobby to be able to know where to put them away in Harry's closet.

Sirius pouted. "Now, that's just sad."

"What's sad?" Both of them turned to see Daphne, who took notice of the clear walkway, enter the kitchen; her eyes, Harry noticed, steering clear from his own. "I see the boxes have disappeared."

"Oh, it's terrible, Daphne! My own godson thinks I'm a lazy, good-for-nothing bum!" Sirius cried dramatically, throwing an arm around the amused witch once she was close enough.

Both Harry and Daphne rolled their eyes, a small blush appearing on each of their faces as they had sought each other's' gaze in habit—a blush that did not go amiss by the canine animagus that chose that moment to look at two teenagers, if the devilish grin that spread across his face was anything to go by.

"Ho, ho, what have we got here?" Sirius intoned, letting go of Daphne to look closely at the blushing teenagers. "Did something happen between my resident soon-to-be, seventh years while I wasn't looking? 'Cause if something did, Remus owes me a couple of galleons."

"Nothing happened!" Both of them cried in unison, their blushes increasing further when they realized how self-accusing they sounded.

"And why would Remus owe you if something _had_?" Harry asked, narrowing his eyes.

Sirius raised his hands in front of him. "Oh nothing, nothing at all—just a friendly bet between friends, you know."

"What _kind_ of bet?" Daphne asked this time with narrowed eyes of her own as she crossed her arms over her chest.

Sirius chuckled nervously, slowly backing away from the scary looking teenagers. "Nothing you two need to concern yourselves over—really."

Luckily for Sirius, he was saved from any further questioning by the shriek of the floo. "Ah, speak of the devil, that's probably Remus asking about those plans of ours. I'll go see what he wants, hm," Sirius said rapidly, shooting them a quick grin before swiftly making his way out of the kitchen.

Harry sighed, shaking his head in defeat. "I really don't want to know what he means by that."

"Who knows," Daphne said with a shrug. "With Sirius, it could be anything."

"That's true," Harry muttered. "Although, I really don't know why Sirius is making such a big deal about it. I mean, they're just clothes. Or is this another wizard tradition I don't know about?"

Daphne smiled, shaking her head in denial. "Although I agree with the motive behind the new clothes because really—be serious, Harry," smirking when Harry gave her a flat look, "there isn't a tradition, per se, for clothes in particular —that actually sounds odd. But even though I'm not making it obvious like wonder mutt over there, Sirius is most likely excited for the same reason I am."

Harry turned, intrigued. "Why?"

Daphne leaned forwards and grinned. "Because, simply put, now everyone will be able to see the Harry we see every day. Isn't that always the reason for buying new clothes for someone?"

Harry grinned back at her. _And simple it is_, he mused, thinking back to the blue box now hidden in his closet. "It would seem so."

"Get ready, my blushing duo! I have confirmed it with Remus, and it seems we're going right ahead with the ceremonial destruction of the rags Harry calls clothes!" Sirius exclaimed as he entered with a wide grin on his face—one that turned into a frown of suspicion as he took in the two teens with narrowed eyes. "Did I happen to miss something again?" Sirius asked accusingly, switching alternatively between the two of them as they looked towards him with silly grins on their faces.

"Oh, nothing," Harry said, innocently.

"Nothing at all," Daphne added in the same tone.

Both of them chortled in laughter when all Sirius could do was pout back at them with a muttered, "Fine, don't tell me. See if I care."

* * *

"A bonfire?" Harry questioned once Sirius told them what they were doing.

They had to wait until after breakfast had been ready for Sirius to reveal their plans. Harry and Daphne had realized with a snicker that Sirius hadn't liked being the butt end of a joke. But after a bit of coaxing and apologizing on both their parts, Sirius had relented. Now, they were sitting on the small kitchen table eating breakfast as they went over what Sirius had apparently planned for just the occasion—that being the arrival of Harry's spiffy new clothes.

"Yup, using that," pointing at the so-called rags Harry had on, "as our main fuel source. And while they're burning, you'll be there looking the little lord that you are in your ceremonial garbs. And by that I mean, dawned in a one of your new outfits, pup. It'll be brilliant—like an official coming of age ceremony as you shed the old you and make room for the new and improved Harry," Sirius informed him, all the while becoming more dramatic with his gestures, his eyes wide, excited, and already far in the distance as he began imagining the entire process and going into greater detail.

Harry and Daphne looked at each other, raising an eyebrow simultaneously at Sirius' eagerness for the entire thing. They chuckled, ducking their heads when Sirius finally caught their expressions, sending an irritated scowl in their direction.

"If you keep making fun of me, I won't tell you guys anything!"

"Sirius, we're not making fun of you, promise," Harry said with a grin.

Daphne nodded in agreement. "It's just nice seeing you so happy."

Sirius narrowed his eyes. "You know, it's weird how you two seem to always back each other up, makes me feel like I'm being left out of the loop or something"

Taking a sip out of their tea, Daphne and Harry glanced at each other over the brim of their cups. Daphne was the first to bring her cup down, shooting an amused look at Sirius.

"Out of the loop? We'd never do that. Right, Harry?"

Harry gave a vigorous nod, placing his cup back on the table. "Oh yeah, never."

"No! No! There it is again!" Sirius exclaimed, pointing an accusing finger at the duo trying really hard to keep from snickering. "You two are doing this on purpose!"

Harry shook silently with laughter, but finally took pity on his godfather. "Calm down, Sirius," he supplied soothingly. "You were saying? Bonfire? Tonight? Using my clothes as a fuel source?"

Sirius sighed. "Harry, Harry, Harry! How many times must I say it? They are not clothes—they are rags. And also, it's a celebration for Remus and Tonks. It seems we'll be seeing another mini-Marauder running around in the near future."

"Really? Tonks' pregnant?"

Harry was happy for the werewolf. He knew how well Remus was with kids, and his heart had lurched when Remus had said he's probably never have kids of his own; with him being a werewolf…it was too risky. Thank Merlin Tonks had likely convinced him otherwise, Harry thought with a happy smile.

"Yup. It seems their bringing Andromeda as well," Sirius informed them. "And heads up, Daphne. Andromeda shares an uncanny similarity to Bellatrix; they're sisters and all that. But she's my favorite cousin for a reason—none of the Black family insanity," he then added as he took a swig of his pumpkin juice.

Daphne nodded, smiling behind the rim of her cup. "Duly noted, Sirius."

"So, when will they be here?" Harry asked, finishing the last of his toast.

"Hmm," Sirius hummed, leaning back into his chair. "Remus said about dinner time, so in a few of hours I would imagine. Meanwhile, we'll just begin setting up, I guess."

"Setting up? What do we need to set up?"

Sirius grinned. "Well, for starters, those rags of yours…"

Both Daphne and Sirius laughed as Harry promptly groaned.

After finishing up with breakfast, they all separated. Harry and Daphne went straight to Harry's bedroom to gather all his old clothes, and Sirius headed out back to get started on the bonfire. Dobby had already separated Harry's clothes, leaving the old in neat, sizeable baskets; so Harry and Daphne didn't take long in levitating them out into the open air of the patio.

Although, Daphne had stayed back for moment before she had caught up with Harry. They then joined in helping Sirius prepare the structure of the bonfire, charming the area around it so it wouldn't accidentally catch fire, and other details that could possibly ruin a potentially fun night. By the time they were finished, they were all sweaty from the midday heat and in need of a cool shower.

However, it wasn't until Harry standing in front of his closet in his boxer shorts, fresh out of his shower did he realize his predicament.

"How am I going to do this?" Harry groaned as he swept a hand over his face. He hadn't even entered his closet, and he already knew how much of a hassle it would be find something to wear. He had been comfortable in his old clothes because for one, he didn't have much to choose from, and two, he didn't have much to choose from! It was just grab whatever and go.

But he knew that's not what Sirius wanted. And some part of him was actually curious to see how his closet looked now. It's just that he didn't know how the heck he was supposed to know what went with what! Taking a deep breath, he prepared himself for the battle that was about to commence and opened the door.

Turns out he really had nothing to worry about. Because placed neatly on the chaise that sat pressed up against the far wall, was the solution to his problem. Smiling as he already had an inkling of who was responsible, Harry picked up the small note that had been left on top of the outfit.

_I believe this would work best for today._

_But in the future, please don't be afraid of flimsy pieces of fabric, Harry. If it looks good, wear it. Besides, I wouldn't let you walk out looking like a sophisticated bum._

_D.G._

Stepping out of the closet with the clothes in one hand and the note in the other, Harry grinned.

Moments later, Harry was walking into Daphne's room after a muffled _come in_ just as the owner of that voice came striding out of the bathroom, towel in her hands, head turned away from him, as she finished drying her hair with it. With a smirk on his face, Harry walked right up to Daphne, wrapped his arms around her slender waist and whispered into her ear, "You are amazing."

"Harry..scared the wits out me!" Daphne exclaimed with a breathless chuckle, when she turned her head towards him. "And I see you found what I laid out for you."

"Yup—first thing I saw," Harry said, loosening his hold a bit to allow Daphne move to maneuver her body around to face him. "Thank you, by the way. I thought I was going to spend the next hour in there."

"I think an hour is a bit too—" Harry's only warning was the widening of Daphne's eyes before his vision was engulfed by strands of gold as smooth arms wrapped around his neck. The sudden added weight threw him off balance, leaving him sitting upright on the floor as his mind caught up with what just happened.

Looking down at the supple young woman shaking on his lap, Harry called out tentatively, "Daphne?"

A moment passed with Harry feeling Daphne's warm breath on his neck that kept sending shivers down his spine before he finally got an answer, "I-I don't what it is….but I just felt something pass through my legs," Daphne whispered shakily.

Raising an eyebrow, Harry shifted his gaze to where Daphne had just been standing and almost laughed. Instead, he bit his lip and made sure he had a secure hold on Daphne's hips. "Make no sudden movements, Daphne…"

Daphne's hold tightened, whispering frantically. "What! Why?... Harry, what is it?"

"It's a cat."

And it was like a switch; the shaking suddenly stopped, her head popped up, and she twisted around, almost slipping off of Harry's lap if he hadn't had his hands on her hips. "A cat?"

Harry chuckled, seeing the ebony black cat, with its tail twitching calmly behind it and spangled red-orange eyes. "A familiar one, actually."

Daphne turned back towards Harry. "You've seen this cat before?"

"Yeah, although it disappeared on me last time…" Harry answered absentmindedly as he watched the cat pad softly towards them, stopping right when it reached his right hip. It stared right into his eyes, an almost searching look in them, before shifting its red-orange orbs towards Daphne.

"Why is it looking at me like that?" Daphne whispered; her eyes focused on the cat.

Harry shook his head slowly. "I don't know. Your guess is as good as mine right now."

If a cat could smirk, both Harry and Daphne could have sworn this one did right at that moment. It then twitched its nose, making its whiskers do a little jiggle, before throwing them for a loop by jumping right in between their bodies, planting itself on his lap. It almost seemed to be giving them the _"Are you idiots?" _look.

Harry and Daphne glanced at each other simultaneously, their lips quirking up at the oddness of the situation. They then looked down at the cat in between them, its head tilting as if beckoning them to do something.

Turning to Harry, Daphne lifted an eyebrow, to which Harry just shrugged. Giving a slow nod, Daphne raised her hand just as Harry did the same and gently placed a hand on the cat—Daphne's at its head, and Harry's right at the curve of its torso—and gave it a slow graze of their hands over its fur. This seemed to please the mysterious cat as its ears gave an interested twitch, and it began to purr, thriving in the contact.

Daphne couldn't help but smile. "What a strange little cat."

Harry was thinking along the same lines but was also wondering why this time was so different. He could still feel the same sense of belonging coming off of the cat. But this time…he got the feeling that it was waiting for something.

He was startled out of his reverie when two red-orange orbs settled on a black, fury face were suddenly thrust in his line of vision.

Daphne's chuckles echoed throughout the room. Lowering the cat, she shot an amused smile at Harry. "Cat got your tongue?"

Leaning back on the palms of his hands, Harry smirked. "You could say that…"

They both laughed softly when the main object of their attention decided it wasn't getting enough attention and chose that time to jump up to Harry's shoulder, giving an annoyed _meow_ for being ignored.

"Alright, alright, we got it…sheesh." Harry chuckled, grabbing the cat before it moved up any farther. Placing it back on his lap, Harry and Daphne resumed with their petting, sharing a grin when the cat preened under their contact. They continued for a few minutes before they were reminded of where they had to be by a knock on Daphne's door.

Before Daphne had a chance even call the person in, the door opened and Sirius's unruly mass of curls poked through the door; and since he Daphne was still straddling Harry's lap and was unable to see the cat sitting in between them as Harry had his back towards the door, thereby blocking that particular detail, his eyes widened in shock as they shifted to the two by the floor, his hands immediately coming up to his face to cover them.

"Ah! Sorry, I'll just come back later when you two aren't a…busy. Although I must say, you two work fast. I didn't think you two would get to this point so soon, especially you Harry. Your father did take seven years after all," Sirius rambled, his hands over his eyes throughout the entire time, not aware of the strange looks he was receiving by the two teenagers.

"Sirius, what in Merlin's name are you talking about?" Harry drawled questionably, his torso twisted to look back at his godfather.

Hearing the tone of his godson's voice and finding it weird that it didn't sound as breathless as he had been imagining, Sirius tentatively lowered his hands; blinking owlishly when, with Harry's body no longer blocking his gaze, he caught sight of the black cat sitting in between the two. Sirius immediately adopted a sheepish expression, his hands dropping to his sides. "Oh…nothing, nothing at all," he muttered, averting his eyes.

* * *

With the cat tucked safely in Daphne's arms, they followed the self-muttering animagus downstairs, where Remus, Tonks, and Andromeda had already arrived and were waiting for them by the patio entrance.

Tonks was the first to spot them, her eyes brightening as she caught sight of Harry; Remus and Andromeda following suit after Tonks' exclamation. "Wotcher, Harry! If I weren't already married to the love of my life, I'd have tried my hands on the handsome devil I see walking towards me!"

"Hello, Tonks," Harry greeted, blushing slightly at the compliment, before greeting Remus and Andromeda as well. Daphne hid her snicker as best as she could by pretending to look down at the cat in her hands; it almost seemed to be laughing softly as well—its whiskers doing that odd jiggle again—when Remus and Andromeda added to the compliment, deepening the blush on Harry's face.

"And if my guess is correct, this must be Daphne," Andromeda said, a kind, yet knowing, smile on her face as her gaze shifted in her direction.

Daphne looked up at the mention of her name, bowing her head slightly in greeting, since her hands were otherwise unavailable at the moment. "Yes, ma'am, Daphne Greengrass."

"Oh, none of that formality, dear. Call me Andromeda."

With a smile, Daphne nodded. "Andromeda, then."

"See you got yourselves a new pet," Tonks quipped, stepping towards Daphne to get a good look at the odd-eyed cat.

Harry smirked, crossing his arms. "Yeah, scared Daphne half to death."

"Well, you would get scared too if something were to suddenly brush past your legs," Daphne countered petulantly, keeping her eyes on the cat as Tonks and Andromeda gushed over its fur.

"Yes, but my first instinct would be to look down and see what it is, not attack the person in front of me."

Daphne narrowed her eyes, turning her head to look at Harry. "I did no—" she began but stopped short when she saw the triumphant grin on Harry's face. She then rolled her eyes, a smile appearing on her own face.

"Harry," Remus called out lowly, his eyes on Sirius who had already taken a seat at the table they had only hours ago set up out on the patio; his head was in his heads, mumbling incomprehensively. Sharing a look with Tonks and Andromeda, who had also noticed something off about the canine animagus, he then raised a curious eyebrow at Harry. Both Harry and Daphne just chuckled, already knowing what was on their minds.

"Don't ask us; we also have no idea," Harry informed them with a shrug.

Remus nodded sagely, well aware of Sirius' moments. With the introductions done, they all then migrated to the table, with a small tap from Remus breaking Sirius' from his brooding. And once everybody was settled—Harry and Daphne by Sirius, next to each other, and Remus, Tonks and Andromeda right across from them—the food appeared, courtesy of Dobby. However, before anyone could start, Remus stood, clearing his throat, which served to bring back Sirius' excitement for the night as his manic grin returned in expectation.

Grabbing a hold of Tonks' hand, Remus smiled at them all. "I know everyone is aware," here, Remus gave a pointed glance at Sirius, who had the decency to look sheepish, "but Dora and I would officially like to announce that—"

"—we're having a baby!" Tonks finished with bright exclamation and a wide, happy grin on her face.

Remus chuckled, taking it in stride as he added, "And ask Harry if he would kindly be our son or daughter's godfather."

"Me?" Harry asked shocked, looking at Remus with wide, surprised eyes. "But…" he trailed off, turning to Sirius.

Sirius laughed, shaking his head, answering Harry's unspoken question. "No, pup, I wouldn't have accepted. I vowed to your dad the day he asked me that I would forever and always only be _your _godfather."

Remus nodded. "And even if he hadn't Harry, Tonks and I know the joy you have for children and fully trust that you'll take care of our son or daughter if something were to happen to us," he confided warmly.

"Exactly, Harry. And besides, you wouldn't be alone. My dear ole' mother here can take care of the yucky business when it comes down to it," Tonks provided encouragingly with a conspiring grin.

It served to lighten the mood as everybody laughed while Andromeda just shook her head at her daughter's antics.

Harry then looked at Remus, wondering how he should respond. He was honored—there was no doubt. But with the years he spent at the Durselys and the wild schemes he always seemed to get into to, would he make good godparent?

He felt a hand—smooth and comforting—intertwine with his own. Glancing at Daphne, her blue-gray eyes shone with trust and reassurance. And for certain reasons he was beginning to realize, he just couldn't object with that.

"Alright, Remus," Harry agreed, turning a warm smile to the werewolf and his pink-haired wife, "if you want me, I'll be there for him or her."

They all cheered, and after all the hugs and thank yous, they began eating. Sirius also gave the go ahead to Dobby, prompting the house elf to light up the arrangement of wood a small distance away from the table. All at once the night shone with embers of light as the bonfire burned, destroying the last physical reminders of Harry's time with the Dursleys.

* * *

The bonfire was on its last smoldering life—slowly dwindling in brightness as the evening slowly came to an end. Daphne sat on the stone steps, watching as its last few embers twirled in the air, almost as if part of the stars in the night sky. With a belly full of food and her mind in a state of soothing happiness, she felt relaxed. She glanced to her right where Harry was speaking to Andromeda about something or another, and Remus and Tonks where watching with amusement as Sirius tried to figure out the cat's gender, failing spectacularly as the cat kept twisting and squirming in his grasp and trying to get a hit at his face, almost as if offended he even had to check.

Chuckling, Daphne turned her attention back to the slowly dying fire, wondering if the rest of her life could be spent like this—surrounded by the warm glow of people who cared for one another. It reminded of the happier times in her life—when her mother was still alive and her father wasn't the husk of a man he once was. But there really was no point in thinking about it. It would only dampen tonight's good feeling.

Glancing over once more, Daphne saw Harry had finished speaking with Andromeda and was walking her way. And watching as he moved, she had to admit ; with his body no longer hidden by baggy clothing, Harry looked rather…hot, the admission almost serving to make her blush.

Daphne had known since the day she'd woken after her attack and found her hands pressed against Harry's chest that behind all that overly spacious clothing hid a lean, firm muscular body—more so after this morning's bump in. But now with the way the light sweater clung to his torso and his dark-washed jeans slimly fitting to his long legs…Daphne found herself growing warm at the sight.

Shaking those thoughts away, Daphne smiled as Harry sat down next to her, their thighs so close they were touching. "How's it feel it feel to be a soon-to-be godfather?"

Harry shook his head dramatically. "I don't think I've figured that out yet."

"Still shocked?" Daphne offered.

Harry scoffed, placing his head in his hands. "Like you wouldn't believe."

"But you're happy right? That they offered?"

Harry leaned back, his expression soft, warm. "Yeah, I am."

Smiling, Daphne dropped her head on Harry's shoulder, taking comfort in his warmth. From here, she could smell the sweet fragrance coming off his chest.

"Do you want kids, Harry?" Daphne asked casually, remembering Remus' comment on it.

When Harry didn't answer, Daphne looked up and realized Harry was staring at her, an odd expression on his face—not bad but thoughtful almost.

"Harry?"

Hearing his name seemed to pull him out of whatever reverie he was in for he then smiled. "Yes, kids are certainly in my plans."

Mollified, Daphne returned the smile, turning her gaze back to the fire before she continued. "Do you know how many?"

This time Harry didn't take as long to answer. "Hmm, I've always wanted a big family so…five sounds about, right. But I can't say for sure, since it also depends on the mother of my children. She's the one who's going to be carrying each of them for nine months after all," Harry responded with a chuckle.

_Mother of my children_…the words echoed in Daphne's ears, a longing she didn't know she'd feel igniting deeply within her heart as images of a raven-haired baby with startling green eyes in the arms its equally-eyed father surfaced in her mind. The thought of an unknown woman being a part of its creation, of loving and sharing the miracle of new life with its raven-haired father, sent piercing stabs of envy—so strong it almost overwhelmed her—straight through her heart. The feelings for Harry were there, she knew, but the realization that they were far stronger than she could have conceived had her momentarily stilling in shock.

However, before she could delve any further, the call of her name startled her back into reality. Looking up and staring into eyes that shone with warm concern, Daphne realized she'd been quiet for a while. "Sorry…got lost for a second."

Harry nodded in understanding. "Knut for your thoughts?"

Daphne sighed, pressing closer so her entire right side was touching Harry, a sudden ache emerging in her heart. "Just thinking about my own family, I guess."

"You have a sister, right?" Harry asked lightly, pressing his face against her hair in a very comforting gesture.

"Astoria," Daphne provided. "We're not particularly close, at least not anymore."

"Did something happen?"

"Well, that's the part I don't understand," she began. "We were the best of friends up until her third year, my fifth year; that's when the rift started to grow. Every time I had tried to approach her…it was like I didn't even exist. I tried everything I could but was only able to watch as the distance between us slowly increased."

Daphne frowned. "I miss it sometimes—the closeness. It's one of the reasons I always wished my parents would have had more children, even though I knew they couldn't."

Daphne felt as Harry's arm came around her back, gently carding his hand through her hair. She shut her eyes in pleasure as his fingers slowly massaged through her scalp. "Why couldn't they?"

"My mother, after she had Astoria, became really ill. The healers in St. Mungo's said that if she tried having another baby, she wouldn't make it—her body had become too weak. She was heartbroken, of course; she had always wanted to have more children. But she persevered. Although the illness never went away, my mother always tried to be there for us." Daphne sighed, wrapping her arms around Harry as she remembered the beauty of her mother's love. "She passed away the summer before I entered Hogwarts."

She felt Harry's lips in her hair as he whispered softly, "I'm sorry."

Smiling wistfully against his chest, Daphne tightened her hold on him just a bit. "It's alright."

They sat like that for an immeasurable moment, caught in each other's embrace. It had Daphne wondering about the future and seeing that it wasn't difficult to picture Harry in it.

Suddenly, she felt as Harry shifted, taking her hand in his and looking into her face. "Daphne, could I ask you something?" he asked, a sudden nervousness flaring in his eyes.

Blinking somewhat owlishly at the question, Daphne nonetheless smiled. "Sure. Ask me anything."

Daphne gave him time to organize his thoughts, her lips twitching when Harry started fidgeting with her hand as if it was the most interesting thing in the world, his eyes closely studying it as he turned it this way and that.

Finally he began, "I don't think Sirius or I have mentioned it in front of you—not that we wanted to keep it from you, of course—but there's a wedding we're planning to go to. I was wondering if you would like to go...with me," Harry finished, looking up with tentative eyes.

Daphne smirked. "Like a date?"

And she couldn't help but smile delightfully at the slight coloring of Harry's cheeks as he responded, "Yeah."

"Okay."

Harry's head shot up. "Really?"

"Yes, really." Daphne raised an eyebrow. "Were you actually expecting me to say no?"

"No," Harry replied sheepishly, shifting his gaze back down to their still-connected hands. "But what if I told you the wedding was tomorrow?"

That's when Daphne's eyes widened. "Tomorrow! Harry, how am I supposed to find something to wear for a wedding by tomorrow?"

Harry laughed. "Such a girl response. I didn't think you'd actually say that."

"Harry! This is no time to laugh! A wedding is a very special occasion for a couple. One can't just arrive casually dressed. It would be an insult to the bride and groom's feelings!"

"Come," Harry said, standing, "I have something to show you."

"But—" Daphne started, standing up with him as he still had a grasp on her hand.

Harry tugged at her hand, already in front of her. "Just follow me."

Relenting, Daphne sighed and let Harry lead her upstairs, coming to a stop in front of his bedroom door. Entering, they walked until they were standing in the middle of his bedroom, in front of his bed.

Standing in front of her, Harry smiled. "Okay, close your eyes."

"Harry, what is it?"

Harry gave her a look.

Daphne sighed, letting her eyelids drop over her eyes. "Okay, eyes closed."

She felt Harry move away from her, hearing as a door opened and afterwards a bit of shuffling, which she could guess was Harry looking for whatever it was he wanted to show her. She then heard the door closed and felt as Harry stood in front of once more.

"Now, open them."

Quickly doing so, Daphne saw Harry holding a rectangular, blue paper box in his hands. "What…?"

Harry smiled. "That day in Diagon Alley when Sirius and Remus took me to get measured for all the clothes that arrived today, I was worried that you wouldn't have anything to wear for tomorrow since you'd left your home so hastily. So I asked the proprietress to have this made for you."

Handing it to her he said, "Open it."

Raising an eyebrow, Daphne took the proffered box, turning to place it on the bed so she wouldn't have to balance it on one hand. Harry still hadn't moved from his spot behind her, giving her space to figure out what was in the box on her own, but she had a feeling he was also nervous about how she'd react to this, too. Removing the lid and setting it to the side, she still didn't know what was inside as it was covered by layers of white, flimsy paper. The crinkling of the delicate material was all that was heard as she slowly pushed it aside, finally revealing what it covered.

The color of it immediately caught her attention; beautifully bold, it was a rich blue—the shade of the darkest sapphire. It looked so smooth, almost as if she was staring at a pool of the clearest, purest water. And carefully grasping it between her fingers over it, the cloth—for that was what her mind had supplied—certainly felt like it. She must have been in a state of shock, she realized, for when she lifted it off the box, the reality of what it was hit her with the same force as a bludger.

Being the daughter of clothing mogul, her knowledge of the different kinds of fabric and material that could possibly be used to make any sort of clothing garment was vast. That's why, as she stared at the beautiful gown in her hands, feeling it under her fingertips, Daphne could have possibly died and come back to life. For in her grasp was a gown made of the one the rarest and most highly sought after silk in the world: Acromantula silk.

Even though Acromantula spiders were numerous in numbers, it takes a specific type of webbing that the spiders produced to make the silk. And they only produced that web once every ten years—when it was time for them to breed and at the point where they are at their most aggressive—the worst for time for any wizard or creature to approach the spiders. But if one did obtain it, the rewards were endless. As impenetrable as basilisk scales but as smooth as a polished gemstone, its beauty was unmatched.

Pressing the gown to her bosom, Daphne was at a loss of what to say. Yes, the dress was absolutely breathtaking. But the fact that Harry had been thinking of her so far ahead warmed her heart to no end.

She shouldn't be surprised. In the weeks she had been with Harry, he was always there for her, always able to bring a smile to her face, and always making her feel safe. And if she had to admit, these past few weeks have been the happiest she has ever been.

"Daphne?"

Taking a deep breath, Daphne carefully placed the beautiful gown back in its box, placing the lid back on and moving it to the left side of the bed. Wiping the tears she knew were running down her face, she turned towards Harry.

His brows were furrowed and the nervousness in his eyes turned to worry when he saw her face. "Daphne?" he called out again, softer this time. "Did I do something wrong? You can tell me if I did. Or did you not like the dress? You can also tell me if..." He sighed, running his hand over his face and up his hair, disheveling it even more.

Daphne almost laughed. He looked so lost. But stepping forward, she braced herself on the firm planes of Harry's chest and before he had anytime to say anything else, she only caught the slight widening of Harry's eyes as she gently pressed her lips against his; eyes shutting of their own accord. It was chaste, but the sensation of it was like no other. Soft and warm against her own, the feeling of Harry's lips had tingles running down her spine.

And it was with heavy reluctance that she pulled back, leaving her lips mere inches away from his. The feeling, though, was still enough to make her heart flutter pleasantly. They were not even touching anymore, but so close she could still feel the heat, the energy.

"I love it…" she whispered softly, tilting her head up slightly to graze her lips against Harry's cheek, "But more importantly, Harry," she continued, gazing deep within those startling green eyes, "I love you, you sweet, lovable man."

She was risking it, she knew. But whether Harry returned her sentiments or not, Daphne would never take those words back. At this moment, her father was out there looking for her, and it was only a matter of time before she'd find herself married off to some man she'd probably never have any feelings for. And if she did develop them, they would never as strong as what she felt for Harry.

There was a reason they met as they did, and it was because deep within her soul she knew that she would never find another man like Harry—so warm, so soft, so welcoming, and so supportive.

Thinking back to the image of that unknown woman beside Harry as he cradled his newborn child, the envy she felt was because with as much as love she could have for Harry, to be the woman beside him as they gazed lovingly at the product of their love, would probably never be possible for her.

And the thought filled her heart with such sorrow, that, at the very least, when the time came, she could leave Harry with the truth—that he was the only man she will ever love.

"So take me tonight, as my gift to you."

* * *

**Author's Note:** Yeah...so sorry. But, come on! You should have known this was coming.

Oh, and for those who like having a visual of things (I sure do), I have the link of Daphne's dress in my profile.

Until next time! :D


	7. Nuptials

8/24/13- This is a new version of what was chapter 7 before. If you're reading it for a second time, the ending hasn't changed. It still leaves off as before, but hopefully, the way it leads up to it makes more sense. If it doesn't, well, I tried. And if you found nothing wrong with it before, I'm glad, truthfully. People can be harsh, you know? But it's understandable.

* * *

Chapter 7: Nuptials

A part of him stood still in a state of shock. A multitude of emotions passed through Harry in one instance: surprise, relief, concern, and possibility a little bit of anger. That last one, however, was aimed more towards himself than at the young woman in front of him, who always seemed to catch him off guard, especially now.

Throughout the evening, watching Daphne laugh and smile at his pseudo-family's antics and seeing her eyes soften whenever she turned towards him, reminding him of the night they'd first locked with his, he had begun to understand. His grasp and knowledge of the emotion might be severely limited, especially after his last and only relationship had ended in total disaster. But the warm glow around his heart, the feeling as it grew when the image of Daphne's smiling face as she laid her hand on the small protrusion of her slowly rounding belly popped in his mind…what else could it be?

However, bringing her upstairs to finally give her the dress, he'd hardly expected "soon" to be well…so soon. But seeing the sincere emotion play in her eyes and feeling the warm glow increase exponentially, he couldn't say it hadn't been welcomed. Now though, he was having trouble figuring out what to say.

Daphne smiled at him, understanding shining in those eyes like as shifted to cradle his face between her hands. "Harry, please believe me when I say I didn't quite expect it to turn out this way, not tonight. But the mind has a strange way of organizing our thoughts, I guess. I have to admit, with the experience I've had with men, I never once thought I'd actually find one who look directly at me and not just the details of my face or body; it was a possibility I had deemed pointless in exploring."

"Of course, it didn't stop me from holding a shred of hope that I would, which is why I chose to wait while the rest of my friends didn't." The smile on her face made him think she was remembering a past quip on the matter. "But meeting you turned that small bit of hope into reality, and that combined with the realization that those years of waiting, looking for the right person to share my body with, could burn to ashes in the blink of an eye because of someone else's actions…is not something I want to happen."

Because what can he say when it feels like the person who's presence he'd grown to need…is giving her final good-bye?

He was never one for plans—that was Hermione. Actions from him were driven by instinct and never particularly thought out. If it felt right, why question it? Right now, that was the same feeling he was getting from Daphne. Slytherin she may be, but he could see—she was following her instincts, just like him—doubt absent in those oceanic eyes. The resoluteness in her eyes was similar to what he remembered feeling just before he jumped on his broom and decided to face Voldemort head on; a grim determination and true belief in his actions.

But why? What was causing Daphne to feel such…desperation?

"Daphne, I—"

"Harry Potter, sir, you must come quick! Come quick!"

Both Harry and Daphne turned as Dobby popped into the room, his bat-like ears flopping every which way as he jumped from foot to foot, wringing his hand in an anxious gesture.

"Dobby, calm down and tell us what's wrong," Harry said, stepping forwards to attempt to sooth the house-elf.

Dobby shook his head. "No time, Harry Potter, sir, no time! Mr. Black says to come downstairs quick!"

Looking back at Daphne, Harry's heart seemed to drop. Fear had entered Daphne's eyes, and all his mind kept repeating was one single question; _why?_ Grasping Daphne's hand in his, he never expected the answer to his question to be waiting downstairs.

***HPDG***

Instead of being lead to the back patio where they had all been last time, Dobby had brought them just outside the Manor wards, where the last group of people he ever expected had arrived.

"What's going on?" Harry asked as he approached his godfather, who was standing beside Remus, Tonk's, and Andromeda next two the large silver maple tree that marked the start of the wards. Their unexpected guests were standing about five steps away.

Kingsley, flanked by two other Aurors—newbies probably as they were already looking uncomfortable under Remus' steely glare—was standing beside a man Harry didn't recognize, but somehow looked impossibly familiar. And it took him a moment to realize why—it was right there in the graceful curve of his nose and high, pureblood cheekbones. Daphne's father. The slight tightening of Daphne's grip on his hand only proved his assumption. Looking at the man, Harry had a hard time imagining how he was even standing; his face seemed impossibly pale; dark shadows, even from where Harry was standing, were noticeable under eyes that looked sunken and tired; and his whole stance seemed to be drawn in on himself even if as he stood impossibly straight.

Beside him, he felt Daphne grab a hold of his forearm with her other hand. Glancing at her, he saw the fear in her eyes increase two-fold. But this time, as she stared coldly at her father, he knew why. He could see other emotions playing in her eyes—anger, frustration, emotions he wanted to understand—but fear was the most prominent; whatever it was her father had done to lead Daphne to him that fateful night in Muggle London, seems wasn't over yet.

"Mr. Potter," Daphne's father called out, "we finally meet. I would thank you for the service you did to the magical community this past year, but as it has only brought me more difficulties—bad for business, you see—I would be lying."

_Business?_ Harry's brow furrowed in confusion.

"From your look, I would guess my daughter did not provide many details about myself. Understandable." The man nodded. "But for time's sake, I will just say that your actions that day had a negative effect on many of my high profile customers."

Harry's eyes narrowed. "And what does that have to do with anything?"

"Straight to the point, are we? Very well." Searching through his robes, he pulled out a small set of documents and then levitated them to Harry. "In those papers is the Wizengamot approved court order for your arrest and thereby you're subsequent escort to Azkaban for the next two years for withholding my daughter against her will, which I will only discard if you relinquish my daughter to me at this instance."

"Against my will!" Daphne exclaimed as Harry's free hand grabbed a hold of the papers. "Father, this is hardly a case of abduction. I left because of my own free will!" Harry took a look at the papers, and sure enough, what Daphne said was true. The front page had _WARRANT OF ARREST-ABDUCTION_ printed in bold letters in the top left corner with his name written in smaller, cursive writing under the large lettering.

"Sir, what is the meaning of this?" Tonks exclaimed questionably, her hair tinged with various red overtones as she gazed angrily at her superior. It looked like she would have done a lot more if Remus hadn't been holding her back. "You know there's no way Harry would do this."

"I can do nothing about it, Auror Tonks," Kingsley informed her, looking as unwilling to follow the order if it were to come down to it. "All evidence is filed under the order of the Wizengamot, for which only Scrimgeour has jurisdiction. As impossible as it may seem, all of it was legally approved; the paperwork all passed by Lord Greengrass."

"Yes, and if my daughter is not returned to be, it will all be legally set in motion," Lord Greengrass added in once more. His eyes then were solely for Daphne. "So, let us go."

Terror as well as anger seized Harry's heart at the thought, his body shifting unconsciously to cover Daphne, as if trying to protect from her father's stare. Daphne too, responded equally, pressing herself closer to his body, her left arm completely wrapping around his, as if anchoring herself so that she wouldn't have to leave. This only seemed to irritate the man, the side of his jaw tightening as his eyes swept over the both of them.

"Daphne,' he called out sternly, "stop with this ridiculousness and let us go."

Harry glared at the man. "What if she doesn't want to want to?"

Lord Greengrass a short laugh, raising an eyebrow. "That's hardly a concern of mine; she is my daughter, and she will do exactly as I say. And if she doesn't, it is your sentence to Azkaban on her head."

"If it's between me or Daphne going to prison, because I know that's what it will be for her, then by all means, set my sentence in motion."

Daphne's hold tightened in degree. "Harry, no…"

Harry shook his head, turning towards her already knowing what she was thinking. "No, Daphne; you don't need to do this. Two years in Azkaban is hardly a sentence."

Daphne moved so that she was standing right in front of him, her hands now only loosely holding on to his left hand. A soft smile bloomed across her face, sending his heart into a flutter. "Harry, thank you."

He was given no time to respond before Daphne leaned in, pressing warm, soft lips against his own; her scent entered his scenes—a cool, delicious smell of tarts and berries. Magic that always brimmed just under his skin, no matter how much he tried to control it, seemed to pulse at the contact, creating an electrifying sensation that went straight to his toes; a sensation that had grown only stronger since their first kiss. He remembered the kiss he'd shared with Cho—and the multiple ones afterwards during fifth year—lips moving awkwardly, heads tilting every which way. It wasn't exactly the way he'd thought kisses would feel like, mainly because he hadn't felt anything at all other than the obvious lip-lock. But that's why he'd been so shocked the first time Daphne's lips had pressed against his; the overflow of sudden emotion and…desire that had sparked in his belly had made him unable to respond. Now though, he knew and as he leaned further into those rose-soft lips, it made him yearn for more.

Yet, soon, to soon in fact, Daphne pulled back, and almost reluctantly in the way their lips continued to cling against each other. "But you don't have to this, Harry," she whispered. And then before, he could even react, she murmured, "_Stupefy."_

And everything went dark.

***HPDG***

Sirius, being right next to them, was able to react fast enough before Harry's weight became too much for Daphne. Settling him softly on the ground, Daphne cradled Harry's cheek with her hand. "Tell him I'm sorry…please. I know it's not the best way to say good-bye, but I saw a glimpse of my father's plan." Daphne turned a rueful smile towards Sirius. "And it seems like we'll only ever be friends." Tears were now falling down her cheeks, and Sirius looked like he was about to protest, but she shook her head. "This is my problem—one he shouldn't have to carry on his shoulders, Sirius."

"He's not going to listen," Sirius whispered softly, turning sad eyes towards his godson.

Daphne smiled. "I know, but by then, it'll probably be too late." Grabbing the papers that had fallen out of Harry's hands, she stood and turned towards her father. "I go, and this,"—she held up the warrant—"is destroyed?"

Lord Greengrass nodded once.

With one last took towards Harry and a new batch of tears that seem to gather under her eyes, blurring her vision, Daphne walked towards Kingsley and gave him the papers. "Please, make sure these are never seen again."

Kingsley nodded. "You have my word, Miss Greengrass."

Then, turning towards her father, she glared. "Well?" Her father held out his hand, and placing hers atop of his, they Disapparated from Black Manor. Not two seconds later, where she expected to see the white walls of their sitting room with the one lone portrait of her mother before she passed away, she was standing in a sumptuously decorated bedroom with dark-walls and heavy drapes over the windows, giving the space a distinctly dark edge to its interior.

"Father, where are we?" However, before she could wonder even more, Daphne stared at the spot where the worst man she could _ever _think of her father associating with stood in front of her. Daphne turned wide, hardened eyes to her father. "What is this?" she exclaimed shortly, turning wide, hardened eyes to her father.

"This Daphne," her father said, "will be your new home from now on."

"What…?" Daphne paled, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Since _that boy_ rid me of many of my highest-paying customers and thereby a great deal high-profit business," Nicholas began with an aggravated tone to his voice, "I have had to take drastic measures that, from your sudden departure from home, I am more than sure you are aware of. Lucius is not only one of the few remaining of those high-paying customers, but he has also agreed to a certain transfer of funds in exchange for you—in other words your bride price."

"Why?" The pain and utter agony behind the tone of voice, enough to make even the strongest man flinch, resounded through the dark walls of the sitting room. "Father, you promised me—your promised mum you wouldn't do this."

"Things change, Daphne," he said simply, which served only to infuriate her even more. What had happened to the father she used to know? The one who would smile proudly at her when she would recognize the different materials and fabrics on a dress a woman wore or coat a man had wrapped around himself; the one who had kept his promise to not interfere in her life for the last seventeen years.

"But why! Why did it all have to change after mum's death?" Because that's exactly when she remembered the distance between her and her father began to grow. It was killing her now. How could not have noticed the deeper deterioration?

Nicholas sighed. It wasn't tired or weary, but more pitiful, as if speaking to an incompetent child. Daphne narrowed her eyes. "I know it's difficult to understand, Daphne. But when your mother had you and Astoria, the promise I made to her was a compromise."

All of Daphne's thoughts stopped in their tracks. A compromise? "What do you mean?"

"Simply, I needed a son, and heir." Nicholas sneered. "Not daughters who would allow the Greengrass name to disappear. Originally, when your mother gave birth to you, my sights were set on following traditional pureblood protocol and having you betrothed, at least that way some wealth would be generated. However, your mother was vehemently against it, and normally, as head of house, that wouldn't have mattered to me. But, she offered a compromise: as long as she could give a son, my heir, I would reconsider. And for a time that was enough."

Daphne's eyes widened. "But after Astoria…"

"Yes." Nicholas sighed. "Unfortunately, the son I was promised was never delivered." His eyes shone with indifference as he looked at her. "And so, here we are."

If Daphne thought she had known hate, she had been severely mistaken. Nothing could compare to the despise she felt right now for the man whom she thought as a father, as a man to look up to, only for it to all be based on utter lies. "It would seem so," she said icily.

"Come now, Daphne, don't be so hard on your father," Lucius supplied. "He's a good man, doing a great service for me by offering his help. In fact, you should be honored; many women would kill to be the wife of a Malfoy."

Daphne narrowed her eyes. Lucius Malfoy might have been sacked from the Ministry for his crimes, although she believed he got off easily because of a certain, idiotic Minister of theirs, he still had money. "What would a man like you need help with?"

He covered his left forearm with his hand. "It would me seem that whatever spell the Dark Lord had begun to weave before his final moments would have been highly destructive if released. Goyle, Avery, McNair, as well as many others, were all incinerated by the force of its backlash. I was not near the Dark Lord, and thanks to Potter flying in at just the correct moment, I was spared. However, whatever the specifications of that spell were have been draining me of my magic for weeks. And that is where you come in, my dear."

"Me? How would I…" Daphne trailed off as she was quickly able to connect the dots. And she glared for all it was worth when she realized why her father had appeared this exact day and why a man like Malfoy would single her out from any other witch he could have had after his wife's death during the war. If taken at a specific time during the lunar cycle after performing the correct ceremony at a specific time of the day, it was one of the only things in the world that could counter the effects of continuous magical exhaustion due to the high levels of magic let out during the act. "How do you even know I'm still a virgin?"

That infuriating smirk of his appeared, and only through force of will alone did she stop herself from hexing him into oblivion. "Please," he drawled, "such innocence is clear in your magic, Miss Greengrass—not a taint in it, which I do commend you in; witches these days can't seem to wait to spread their legs," he mused. "Now, if you'll excuse us, your father and I have some last minute preparations to attend to. With the full moon tomorrow, the ceremony must be absolutely perfect, you understand." Lucius smirked. "And do try to behave yourself, wouldn't want the wards in the room to give you a terrible shock."

Daphne could only grit her teeth as the blond aristocrat steeped out of the room, her father following after him without even a glance back towards her.

Her heart burned in rage. To be betrayed by her own father… the reality seemed all the more hurtful without Harry.

***HPDG***

Harry bolted into consciousness with a start, Daphne's name on his lips as his eyes snapped open, his body jerking upright. Warm sunlight spilled across the hardwood floor as his eyes swept over room, his eyes landing on the gift he'd given Daphne as it lay siting on dresser in front of his bed. A broken sigh escaped his lips as memories of last night continued to play over his mind. Hardly a day had passed and already it felt like a hole had been cut through his heart; Daphne's departure had taken more from him than he could have ever imagined.

He had woken up much the same yesterday after Daphne had stunned him. Sirius had placed him on the sofa in the living room, and he'd also been the one to explain. Andromeda had tried consoling him as the rest had looked on with worried eyes, but those words too had fallen on deaf ears and glances of concern seen by blind man eyes. Harry didn't remember how he'd even made it back to his room or anything much afterwards.

_Daphne_. The single reminder of her absence continued to jolt his mind in protest.

Forcing himself out of bed, and then made his way over to the bathroom, stripping away at the clothes from last night he'd worn to bed as he did so. Showering quickly, he didn't take much time getting dressed either, grabbing whatever made its way into his hands first before making his way out the door. It was probably already a bit past noon, guessing from the sunlight streaming into the room. And Sirius, although hadn't yet sent Dobby up, would probably be sending him soon; they did have a wedding to attend to later on in the afternoon.

Without Daphne.

The built-in shelving units shook with the force of the impact; the shock of it traveling up the side of his fisted hand as he stood there, at the top of the stairs. He had thought that the throbbing in his chest couldn't get any worse, couldn't get any more painful. But the stabbing jolt of reality seemed to always prove him wrong. And although this wasn't the first time he'd been without Daphne's constant presence, that time spent at the Burrow away from her had been different; that time he had known Daphne would be here when he got back. This time, wherever he turned, wherever he looked, Daphne wouldn't be there; and the chasm in his heart dipped deeper with every reminder. He needed her back, needed the young woman who's presence his magic, body and soul yearned for. But how…when he didn't even know where to look.

Rounding the last curve of the stairs, Harry bumped into Sirius. "You okay there, pup? I thought I heard something crash into one of the walls," Sirius murmured with a concerned look to his features.

"Yeah, completely fine, nothing to worry about." Harry smiled, hoping to quickly get passed his godfather, but just as he shifted to move passed him, he was stopped by a hand at his elbow. He didn't even turn to look at his godfather to be able to see the worried expression that would no doubt be on his face; his voice dripped with it.

He heard him sigh. "Harry, you know you can talk to me about it, right?"

Of course he knew. But what more was there to say that couldn't already be seen? "I know, Sirius," he said softly, before prying his arm away from Sirius's hold; it wasn't hard—he let go with the slightest tug.

Breakfast, or lunch as the case may be, wasn't much of a difference with Sirius continuously giving him worried looks. He tried swallowing as much of what was on his plate as he could. However, his appetite was nonexistent and the whole process turned futile when all he was doing was pushing his food around, which only seemed to earn him more concerned looks from Sirius. Excusing himself from the table, he ignored Sirius' attempt to reach out for him and walked right out into the outside patio. His feet were on automatic, taking him across the stone cobblestones and into the dirt path that went through the gardens. The soft greens and browns and the occasional color from blooming flowers soothed some of the tension in his body, the sweet floral scent in the air reminding him of much more pleasant times.

The end of the trail opened into this small slope of land that dipped into the blue waters of the lake; healthy, green grass clear of bumps or ridges except for one tall, lone tree whose braches spread over the slope like a protective umbrella. It was the spot he and Daphne would sit to watch the creatures of the lake interact in an amusing display of real world drama. If he closed his eyes, he could almost imagine Daphne laughing and smiling along with him. But like all memories, they're an echo of the real thing.

Sighing, Harry made his way under the big tree, flopping onto the grass right in front of it. Here, everything was quiet, letting you here the rustling of the leaves and the trickling of water as the wind blew through the trees. It was peaceful, serene.

But it was lonesome, just like the tree he was leaning on.

***HPDG***

Daphne stood in front of a full-length mirror, staring at the white, lacy gown she had on. It was skillfully tailored to her measurements, highlighting the curve of her torso, even with the looseness of the fabric. The sweetheart bodice was ruched, the front part of the dress pinched in between, creating a slight, yet elegant cascade of lace towards the hem. It was beautiful…and she completely hated it.

There was no veil, for which she was thankful for—the gown itself was already a continuous reminder of what was to begin at sunset. However, in place of the veil, a small, twinkling tiara had taken its place, her hair having been picked up in a loose bun that left a few tendrils of hair to fall around her face in soft curls. In her hands, she held a small bouquet of white roses that she would carry as her father walked her down the cobblestone aisle set up beside an orchard of cherry blossoms behind Malfoy Manor.

The entire setting screamed romantic when Draco had passed along the details; he had actually surprised her when he'd shown up early this morning with the white gown she would wear for her 'wedding.' Daphne didn't know what had happened, but Draco had changed; the haughty attitude she'd always known him for wasn't there anymore. Of course, not to say it hadn't disappeared, but it was noticeable. Narcissa Malfoy (neé Black) had died near the end of the battle protecting her son from a misfired killing curse. And the only thing she could guess was that his mother's death had affected him more than he let people on.

She wondered, however, what would be done with her after her purpose had been fulfilled; Lucius no longer needed an heir…

Really, who was she kidding? Even after all was said and done, Lucius was still a hot-blooded male; there was no question what would be done with her. She'd be lucky if she ever left his bedroom after this. It was a thought that sent an aching blow piercing through her heart. There was only one year left for her at Hogwarts, and she wouldn't even be able to complete it; wouldn't get to see Tracey and find out what crazy-brained antics she'd gotten herself into this summer in America while she visited some cousins; wouldn't get to see Harry…

_Harry_. It had only been a day. How was she supposed to survive an entire lifetime?

Her vision went blurry as she gazed upon her reflection. "If only we'd met sooner…" Maybe then her worst fear wouldn't be coming true. Maybe then she would have felt what it was like to truly be loved. Having to marry and sacrifice her virginity to a man she didn't love for a ridiculous ritual made for the weak—how pathetic.

"Daphne…" The call of her name had her turning towards the doorway of her prison-room. There she saw Draco standing in his white-on-silver dress robes; "…it's time."

Nodding, she gave herself one last final look as she drained her face of all emotions before she rose to follow Draco out. At least one aspect of the new life that awaited her wouldn't be all bad; she'd have Draco has a stepson. Hopefully he would find happiness in his life; he might just share it with her—she would be his stepmother after all.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Yes, I know it's supposed to be light and fluffy. Yes, I know it's angst. Sorry. But seriously, chill and move on to the next chapter. It gets better. I promise. Or at least whatever horrible idea you have about what might happen, stop thinking about it.

Actually, I'll stop explaining.


	8. Time

Chapter 8: Time

_Come, follow me._

Harry opened his eyes suddenly and was startled to see two red-orange eyes staring down at him. He blinked and murmured to the small black cat that was sitting on his chest, "You know, you pop up at the most unexpected of times." The tiniest bit of exasperation seemed to shimmer in those fiery depths before it hopped off.

Sitting up, he realized he must have dozed off at some point because the sun was now far closer to the horizon than it had been when he'd last seen it. The soft crunch of grass had him turning around to see who was approaching, although the answer was obvious. It was only him and Sirius in the Manor.

"So this is where you went to hide," Sirius intoned, staring up at the silver maple. "Have to say, this thing's huge!" he exclaimed with a whistle.

Harry frowned at his godfather. "I didn't come here to hide...just to think. Besides, you found me, didn't you?"

"Mhm-hm, yeah," Sirius said absentmindedly as he knocked and patted at the bark of the tree.

"You're not even listening." Harry sighed, standing up. The small, black cat began to _meow_ excessively, but Harry paid it no mind, putting it off as regular cat behavior, not remembering it had only ever 'spoken' to him once.

Sirius grinned, removing his hands from the tree to turn to Harry. "Point in fact, I am not. But, that is only because I knew James and I know you. So, your response is moot."

"How does that even makes sense?"

"Because, knowing both of you, I don't need to listen to know what your response is going to be…like father like son, as the saying goes," Sirius said with a fiery kind of pride that Harry, at that moment, couldn't understand why, but then the moment passed and Sirius' expression turned impish. "And if you are done hiding, we need to go. The wedding is only an hour away, pup."

"For the last time, I was not hiding!" Harry insisted with furrowed brows as Sirius began walking back towards the Manor. And as he began following after his godfather, Harry never noticed the cat's glowering look as it began following after him as well. The hour passed quite quickly even though neither wizard needed much time to get ready, although, with Sirius, that was debatable; the man spent a ridiculously long time fixing his hair. And when they finally met each other downstairs, day was closely approaching night and Andromeda, who had agreed to joining Sirius as his 'date' to the wedding, was already waiting for them by the floo entrance.

"Dear cousin, I do believe this is the first time I've seen you dressed so handsomely," Andromeda remarked as Sirius passed through the doorway of the drawing room. "I like it."

"Well, with the beauty I'll have in my arms, I don't think it'll be much of a difference, truthfully," Sirius said thoughtfully.

Andromeda laughed softly, patting Sirius lightly in the chest. "Always the flatterer, aren't we Sirius?"

"It's only flattery if you don't mean it."

As he stepped into the room, Harry personally thought both Sirius and Andromeda spoke the truth. Dressed in finely tailored black robes with smoky gray inlays, he was actually getting a glimpse of the tall, well-built man his godfather had always been praised for in his youth; and Andromeda with her corseted, plum colored evening gown was the picture perfect example of aristocratic genes at work. With the casual elegance that each of them seemed to exude, the patrician beauty common to all Blacks was not lost with them. Together, they would make quite the eye-catching pair at the wedding.

Blinking, Harry realized he was being stared at. "What? Did I put something on wrong?" He looked down at himself to see if he'd messed up somewhere; the new robes were nice—very nice, actually—but they were not ones he was used to seeing; where the robes should have reached his ankles, they barely reached mid-thigh, allowing the bottom trouser to be seen; and where they should have been loose on his torso, they were rather slim and form-fitting. Just about the only thing he was used to on the robes was the slight turtleneck he had had under, except for the fact it was cut-off at his shoulders. The few similarities these robes had with Sirius' was the coloring—black and grey; the black being the color of his robes and trousers, and the grey being the color of the cut-off turtleneck. There was also the work Sirius had done to his hair—it wasn't bad; he just didn't see it as much of a difference from his normal, ever-which-way hair.

Both Sirius and Andromeda chuckled at the oblivious young man. "No, Harry. You just look good," Sirius replied, sharing a smile with Andromeda.

"Oh, thanks," Harry smiled, not too convinced that was all it was but let it slide. They were already running late for the wedding anyways.

* * *

When they'd finally Apparated to the Burrow, just outside the orchard, Fred and George had to immediately usher them to their assigned seats inside the marquee. There were golden chairs on either side of a long, purple carpet; theirs were on the left side, right beside Remus and Tonks in the second row. Harry caught a glimpse of Hermione sitting beside Viktor Krum on same row as them but on the other side. He found that quite odd, considering he had Ron would have coveted the seat next to her, which brought to question where his red-haired friend actually was. But he didn't have time to look around long enough because soon after they'd sat down, the guests quieted and the music began playing.

Ginny and Fleur's little sister, Gabrielle, were the first to appear, walking down the aisle in their golden bridesmaid dresses. They carried a small bouquet of light purple flowers in their hands as they took their place opposite of Charlie, Bill's best man. Escorted by her father, Fleur followed in a simple white dress of shimmering silk, wearing a small tiara on the crown of her loosely braided head of hair, and looking positively radiant. Bill was standing at the end of the aisle nest to Charlie, and as he caught sight of Fleur, a tender-filled smile broke across his face, the love for his wife-to-be clear for anyone to see.

Harry had never been to a wedding before, but he was sure it was meant to be like this; surrounded by family, people who loved you and were always looking for your happiness; friends who've been with you through everything; and most importantly, beside the person whom you have chosen to spend the rest of your life with.

"Do you, William-Arthur, take Fleur Isabelle…?"

His heart was splitting open at the seams. Daphne had said yes; she should have been here beside him; her warm, bright smile beaming with joy, just like Hermione's was, for the two people standing at the front of the aisle, gazing at each other with all the love in the world. It wouldn't matter that she barely knew the couple; Daphne would be happy for them nonetheless.

"…then I declare you bonded for life." The wizard presiding over the ceremony waved his wand over Bill and Fleur's entwined fingers, and the silver bands of magic that had begun swirling around their hands at the start of their vows turned gold. The now golden tendrils began swirling rapidly, grew smaller, and then seeped under the skin of their hands. There was a bright flash of light before everyone was standing in applause as twin gold bands now adorned Bill and Fleur's left ring fingers.

With the vows out of the way, the celebration began. The newlyweds were immediately surrounded by the many well-wishers; the walls of the marquee as well as the chairs were magically removed, opening up room for the dance floor and tables for the guests; and waiters entered with trays of food as the band began to play.

"Harry!"

He turned just in time to catch a bright swirl of red before arms were wounding around his neck in a warm embrace. Chocolate brown curls engulfed his vision as his own hands moved to wrap around his best friend's waist. "Hermione…"

"I was wondering when you and Sirius would get here." Letting go, Hermione smiled at him. "A little late aren't we?"

The barest of smiles appeared on his face. "Lost track of time."

Hermione frowned, her eyes lighting up with concern. "What's wrong, Harry?" She looked around, searching for the person that was also supposed to be here with him. "Where's Daphne?"

Harry's hands fisted and it was with a self-aimed anger that he recounted the events of last night. At the end, Harry could only clench his teeth in frustration for letting Daphne's father get the better of him. What kind of a savior was he couldn't even save the one person that mattered most? "I don't even know where he took her," Harry said resentfully. He hadn't wanted to cause Daphne any pain by reminding her of the home she'd left, but it was only now that he regretted never asking; he would have been able to go to her even if it meant invading Lord Greengrass' home. Azkaban was nothing after six years of having an evil overlord after your life.

Hermione sighed. "Harry, I know what you're thinking. But stop and really think about this; even if you were able to take her back, the cycle would only start again. And the second time it might mean more than just two years in Azkaban."

"Hermione, I don't care as long as Daphne's happy."

"Yes, but Harry, how would Daphne feel happy knowing you got sent to Azkaban because of her? From what I can guess, you two are a lot alike. And I am sure if the roles were reversed you would do the same thing Daphne did."

Harry could only sigh. Why did Hermione always have to be right? But even so, that didn't mean he should waste any time doing nothing. From what Daphne had told Sirius, something was going to happen soon, something he knew he would regret not doing something about.

"Look Harry," Hermione began softly, "we'll find a way. I promise."

The barest of smiled appeared on his face, the frustration too much to push through. "Thanks Hermione. And for the record, you look amazing tonight," he admitted to her. And she certainly did; the red, a-lined dress she had on clung to her petite figure in a most flattering manner.

A smile blossomed across Hermione's face. "Thank you, Harry. At least one of you knows how to compliment a girl." Hermione scowled. "The other needs to _grow up._"

Harry winced. This was going into covered territory. And it never was good to go into already covered territory—it always brought up moments that should never be revisited, especially when it came to his two best friends. However, Viktor Krum sitting with her made a lot more sense now. It was never good to have both of his closest friends unhappy. He was about to ask, hesitantly, what it was Ron had done this time, but at that moment he noticed the amount of attention the two of them were receiving from Fleur's side of the family. And he knew they were Fleur's because for one, none of them had red hair; and second, all the wizards around them were suddenly very preoccupied with their eyes.

Did he forget to mention they were all Veelas? The slight tug in his mind certainly confirmed that.

They were all about his age or older—all girls, of course. But it was weird how he noticed their approach, like a pack of lionesses stalking their prey—him being the nice little dear put in a cage for their enjoyment. He was starting to think there was something seriously wrong with his mind.

Hermione must have noticed the odd look he was giving them because she turned to look behind her, following his line of sight. But when she turned back towards him, she shot him and apologetic smile.

"Wha..?"

"I'm really sorry, Harry, but I promised Fleur. Of course, at that time I didn't think it would be this bad…"— she muttered as her eyes seemed to run down his body, an action that only severed to make him want to back up against the metaphorical cage even more—"but I do believe some of the blame should be placed on you."

Harry had no time to ask why or what exactly was the promise she had made to Fleur because at that exact moment one of the girls—Fleur's cousin?—had gotten close in enough to latch on to his arm, which apparently gave the rest the go ahead, and before he knew it, he was being dragged away from Hermione by a gaggle of giggling Veela witches. Who knew girls could be so strong?

* * *

Harry stumbled out of the dance floor, grabbing a hold of one of the chairs around a nearby table to steady himself. He didn't know how many times he'd been led around the dance floor or the number of times he had to stop a hand from wandering to areas on his body that he knew were not platonic at all, but he was really glad he wasn't the center of attention anymore. _Thank Merlin for Fred and George. _He was pretty sure they would appreciate being surrounded by Veela cousins of the bride.

Fixing his glasses, Harry straightened. Looking around, he saw Hermione on the other side of the tent talking and laughing with Krum, and he sighed when he finally spotted Ron sitting with Luna and Neville, glaring daggers at the Bulgarian wizard from across the ways. _Sorry buddy, I don't think I can help you with this one. _Harry shook his head, feeling bad for his other best friend. But this was a part of their lives he knew he shouldn't interfere.

Ducking his head, he began making his way through the tables, trying to keep low and not attract any more attention. Hermione had been of no help last time, and he doubted she would be helping him out if it happened a second time. He weaved through a few more crowds of people, and soon, he was out of the tent. Sighing in relief, Harry leaned back against one of the tent poles, letting his head fall back. Daylight seemed to skim the surface now as sunset was upon them, casting shadows among the Weasley family orchards. It was hard to believe such a beautiful scene only twisted the beating organ in his chest even more.

"_Come, follow me. I know…"_

Jerking his head around, Harry stepped away from the tent. He remembered that voice…from back on the Manor. He had thought it was his minds playing tricks on him, and yet here it was again.

"_Follow me; I know where she is."_

Harry twirled around to his left; there it was again. But what was it? And what did it…"You know where Daphne is? Who are you?"

"_No time, just follow."_

"But I don't know where you are. Show yourself." Couldn't very well follow something he couldn't see, Harry wanted to add. He also really wanted to know who that voice belonged to. It was feminine and reminded him a lot of Professor McGonagall, except for the accent that accompanied it. And weirdly enough, it felt familiar even though this was the first time he'd ever heard it. He didn't how to explain it, but he could swear it was like something he'd felt before recently. He just couldn't remember what had caused it.

"_Over here, this—"_

"Who are you talking to, Harry?"

Harry jerked around, surprised. "Ginny…"

The red head smiled, coming out of the tent and moving towards Harry. "I've been looking for you. What are you doing out here?"

"Just thinking," he replied, slowly inching his was closer to where he'd last heard the voice. Ginny was a good friend, but he really didn't feel like explaining how an unknown voice was whispering about knowing where Daphne was. Not that she would know about Daphne; he had only told Hermione after all. "Ginny, look, I—"

Ginny grabbed a hold of his hand. "Whatever it is, I'm pretty sure it can wait, can't it? Please, there's something I want to talk to you about."

Any other time, Harry wouldn't mind speaking with Ginny. Now wasn't that time. Especially with the look Ginny was giving him. He'd seen that look before on someone else, someone his magic really didn't like remembering. "I'm sorry, Ginny. But I—"

"It'll only be a few minutes, I promise." Ginny kept coming closer, uncomfortably so. And he was really starting to get angry. Good friend or not, Harry had not time for this. But just as he thought he would have to face his best friend's wrath for upsetting her sister, something else beat him to it. Somewhere behind his back, something shot out of the shadows of the grass and impacted right with Ginny's chest. She yelped, letting go thankfully before she fell back in shock, landing sitting up. She seemed alright considering she was yelling up a storm at the cause of her fall, and Harry was glad she wasn't injured, but his attention immediately zeroed in on the figure that had scared Ginny back. Completely black with a streak feline body, it was the same odd-eyed cat from the manor!

Getting over his surprise, Harry was now more than confused. "What are you doing here?" he muttered curiously.

"_No time, just follow,"_ it hissed impatiently as it turned to face Harry, and before he had any time to process the fact that _the cat_ was the owner of the mysterious voice, it jumped on to him. It was only thanks to his fine-tuned reflexes that he was able to wrap his hands around its torso before it even had the chance to sink its claws into his chest. But later on he would figure out that had been its goal all along because just as his hands touched the black-furred body, his eyes seem to cross as they Disapparated from the Burrow. Or at least he thought it was Disapparation until he realized he hadn't gone through the sensation of being sucked through a tube and yet before he knew it they were standing in a dark-walled hallway—one he had no trouble recognizing thanks to the pale-faced portraits that seem to be staring down at him.

Harry turned a wide-eyed stare to the small, black cat in his hands. "How did you—"

"_Just follow."_ Its eyes flashed dangerously before it wiggled out of his grasp, dropping down to the carpeted floor. Fiery eyes then looked up at him. _"Follow,"_ it repeated before it went streaking down the hallway, leaving Harry only seconds to respond. And in those few seconds all thoughts of how, what and who were placed in the back of his mind because one thing was for certain: Daphne was here, and he wasn't about to let this chance escape him, odd telepathic cat or not.

* * *

Flowers in her hands and standing beside the last man she'd ever thought this would be happening with, Daphne kept her face as blank as she could imagine, considering the man beside her was the last man she wanted to spend the rest of her life with. Although, she wouldn't call this wedding considering the only guests technically attending were her sister Astoria, who hadn't even her a glance when she'd flooed in, and Draco, whose ashen face spoke much about his opinion over his father's actions. Lucius wasn't very pleased at the moment, though. From what she could see from her peripheral vision, the blond aristocrat was feeling particularly annoyed and just a tad bit impatient at the moment, if the twitch of his left eyebrow was anything to go by. She guessed she would be too if she were a wizard pressed for time.

In front of them was a thin, tuffy-haired wizard, probably no younger than 100 years old, acting as the marriage officiant, a man her father had acquired for today. And at the moment, he was looking through a large leather satchel he had levitating in front of him, muttering something about his glasses. Standing slightly off to the side was her father, looking positively bored and uninterested. A real father, really.

Daphne could have shaken her head. But she didn't. That man wasn't her father; so what was the point?

"Aha! I found them," the old wizard exclaimed, pulling out a pair of black, rectangular spectacles. Placing his satchel down on the ground, he smiled at them. "Hello there. My name is Hodapp. I apologize for the delay, but these darn glasses of mine always seem to end up under all my dark-toned robes for some reason. Makes it very hard to distinguish where they are exactly…"

Daphne smiled despite the situation; the man's bubbly personality reminded her so much of Andre, the old proprietor of the jewelry shop she'd visited only weeks ago; it seemed liked ages.

"Let's get this ceremony started, shall we?" Taking out his wand, he flicked it once, turning the tip of his wand gold indicating that the first stages of the ceremony were set to begin. However, before the starting words could be uttered, they were interrupted by the only person who could make her heart flutter as it did in that instant.

"You know, somehow this doesn't surprise me. You would be a part of this, eh Malfoy?"

At first, Daphne had a bit of trouble recognizing it—a state of shock maybe? But as soon as his voice registered in her mind, Daphne' s eyes widened, and as turning to look behind her, she promptly gasped in shock; for walking down the cobblestone aisle, panting harshly, with pink cheery blossoms swirling in the ground around him as a passing wind got them, was the most beautiful sight in the world. The bouquet of roses that she'd held in her right hand fell to ground as her hands slowly rose to cover over her mouth. _Harry…_

Lucius had twisted sharply around during this time. "Potter," he snapped, "as troublesome as always. I am unsure as to how you were able to get past my wards, but do know your timing is horrendous."

Harry smiled. "Actually, I'd say I was just in the nick of time. Whether you see it the same way, though,"—he smirked— "hardly matters."

Lucius' eyes narrowed. "I would ask what it is you are even doing here, but,"—Daphne had to grab a hold of Lucius' robes to prevent herself from falling as Lucius pulled her body roughly against his torso, and Harry's eyes turned threatening—"that _hardly_ requires much consideration." He smirked. "Eh, Potter?"

"Let her go." Harry's voice seemed so distant; so low, it might as well could have been called a whisper. But Daphne's eyes were focused on the fire that had set ablaze within emerald green pools; so fierce, it had the hair at the back of her neck standing on end. Electrifying tingles ran down her body as she felt it, like fine wisps of smoke slowly crawling through the air…Harry's magic.

Lucius merely raised an elegant eyebrow. "And pray tell me Potter, what would possibly happen if I don't?"

"I said, _let her go_." This time, Harry's voice carried over clearly, and magic that had begun to tingle her skin thickened in the air—a fiery, wild, raw source of energy that was all Harry.

Lucius's eyes flashed wildly, an almost hungry glint to his expression, before it disappeared as he smirked. "Redundancy really doesn't suit you, Potter. Besides, Miss Greengrasss here, "—he tightened his hold, reminding Daphne she was still holding on to Lucius in shock and promptly let go, although couldn't step away when she tried—" as my wife-to-be is mine to do as I please. And if you so dare to lay a single on hand on her, you can expect your face in the front page of the _Daily Prophet_ by this time tomorrow. Tell me, how do you think your endearing public will react knowing their _savior_ was on a way track to Azkaban? Such a switch in roles, isn't it?"

Daphne almost flinched as Harry's gaze sought her—all-consuming eyes that raged with sentient flicks of emotion, closely reminding her of a billowing inferno capable of incinerating anything through mere contact—like Fiendfyre. The questions were clear, but all she could do was look away. She had too! How could she even look into those eyes and dare to admit that everything Lucius has said was true?

"I'll triple it," Harry interrupted, staring straight at her father this time. "It's money you need, right? Whatever amount it was that I unintentionally had you lose…I'll triple it." Next to her, she thought she heard Astoria gasp, but her attention was too focused on the reality of what Harry was doing.

"Triple it?" Lucius turned an incredulous stare towards Harry. "Potter, do you even comprehend the amount you are proposing? The Potters might have been well-off, but you are clearly overestimating the wealth lying in those vaults," Lucius sneered, although a flash of uncertainty did pass through his eyes before it was gone and replaced by the ever-present Lucius confidence as he turned towards Nicholas. "Besides, you can't expect his claim to have any merit."

Daphne was about to correct him on that, but Hodapp—bless that old man— beat her to it. "Actually, although this was not set to be revealed until the end of this month, it seems Mr. Potter can spare every knut," Hodapp supplied. He then turned towards Harry. "Or am I correct in saying it is now Lord Potter-Black?"

A flash of confusion passed through his eyes, but then it left as quickly as it acme as he smiled at the old man. "Just Harry is fine."

The old man laughed softly. "If that is your wish…I will oblige, Harry." He then turned to face her father. "What do you say, Lord Greengrass? Do you accept Harry's proposal?"

"Lucius is right, Mr. Potter," Nicholas began after a moment. "What you are offering is a…considerable amount…" Daphne could have rolled her eyes; it was easy to tell how her father was already making all the calculations in his head; the interested look in his eyes was not hard to miss. "Are you sure?"

Intense, green eyes turned towards Daphne, and all she could think of was be amazed at the difference between these two men. "Absolutely." Then his gaze hardened as it turned back towards her father. "But on one condition: you have to agree to not interfere with Daphne's life ever again."

Daphne gasped, holding her breath as Nicholas' eyes narrowed. But then with a jerk nod he said, "Very well, Mr. Potter. I will have the papers drawn up tomorrow. Expect them next week. Come along now, Astoria." With that, Nicholas began striding back towards the manor, and Astoria, after a narrowed eyed stare at Daphne, began following along with him.

"Nicholas," Lucius growled, looking slightly panicked, "Remember our agreement!"

Nicholas turned back briefly towards Lucius. "Ah, yes. Expect the funds to be transferred back to your vault once Mr. Potter gets in touch with the goblins." Nicholas nodded. "Thank you, Lucius, but I am no longer in need of your assistance." And then he turned around without a glance.

Lucius let go of Daphne, quickly beginning to follow after Nicholas, his expression now devoid of any form of control with panic completely covering his expression. "I'll…I'll give you four—five times what Potter is—"

"That is enough, father."

Lucius stiffened as he turned to stare at his son. "Draco, what are you…?"

"Face it, father, you lost. The plan would only have worked as long as you were married during sunset before the full moon." Draco looked up at his father from under blond eyelashes. "That time has already passed."

Daphne's brow furrowed, looking up at the sky. Sure enough, the sun, which had been only barely on its way down into the horizon in the beginning, was now on its last rays; only seconds and it will be no more; it would be night. Draco was right; he was out of time. And shifting her gaze towards Lucius, his eyes were at the now at the setting sun, a most frightened look on his face.

"But Draco…my magic…What about my _magic_!" Lucius approached his son, grabbing at his shoulders and looking like a man trying to call for water in the desert.

Draco shook his head. "It's gone father; it's no more."

Lucius' blood drained from his face. "No…no, it cannot be. _You lie!_" His quite muttering turned into a snarl. "_Lies! All of it—"_

Draco sighed as he let his stunned father fall to the floor. "I'm sorry, Daphne, about my father," he said, looking up at her. "Rest assured he won't be a bother to you anymore."

Daphne smiled softly. "Thank you, Draco."

He nodded, and then turned to Harry, the sardonic look she was familiar with at Hogwarts returning. "Potter, you have five minutes, after which I am not to be blamed for any _occurrences_ with the wards." Then, levitating his father, Draco strode back to the manor, sneering at Harry when he passed by, almost making Daphne chuckle. _Why can't he just say he's bringing down the wards for five minutes?_

However, all thoughts of her Slytherin classmate were blown out of the water when her eyes locked with Harry's. Slowly, as he approached, the flutter in heart steadily began increasing. She barely even registered Hodapp's words by the time her arms were wrapped around Harry.

"Marvelous! I do so love happy endings!" his soft, happy laughter filling what would have otherwise been an echoing silence as the worry-filled fog of tomorrow dissipated like a dying wave.

* * *

Apparating back to Black Manor was like the ending of a horrible nightmare; as torturous it was, waking up ended it quickly. Daphne almost felt like she had never left. But her eyes wandered around Harry's room, taking every little detail that could have possibly changed; it might have been only been a day, but to her it could have well have been months. Not much had changed of course, but there was the void still ached in her heart.

Looking over at Harry's dresser, Daphne saw a rectangular blue box lying on top of the dark-wood finish. The feelings that surfaced from seeing it after all that had happened made everything seem a bit surreal. Grasping it in her hands, she found it a bit humorous to think that even if her father hadn't arrived yesterday she would have still been a part of a wedding celebration, although she wouldn't call marrying Lucius a celebration.

Daphne felt more than heard as Harry's taller form stepped in front of her—cool air heating at the closeness of his person. "From the very start," he began, "you had known."

"About Lucius? No," she admitted, running a reverent hand over the box's smooth, colored surface. "But I had seen the documents for my father's other considerations on his desk the day I left."

"Why didn't you tell me? I could have—"

Daphne stared straight into troubled, green orbs. "Because your kindness knows no bounds, Harry. Even though meeting you that night is a coincidence I'll always thank the heavens for, from the start, you were never meant to carry this worry over your shoulders, especially after you've already held so much for one lifetime." A moment passed when neither of them spoke and she sighed, tightening the hold she had on the box. "If you never want to see me after this, I wouldn't blame you."

Arms wound around her body, taking the box away from her hands. What happened to that box, she wouldn't find out until morning because all her mind could focus on were the pair of lips that immediately crashed against her own. Automatically, her arms wrapped around Harry's neck, her head tilting as Harry's lips fully pressed against her own. Hands pulled at her waist, pulling her flush against a hard, toned torso. There was a desperation pulling at her, one she could feel in Harry as well with the forcefulness of his lips. All focus turned to the blistering heat emanating from their mouths, fueling the kiss; the sensual dance of their movement deepening as the heat slowly began to ignite. The sensation hypnotized her, pulling at her belly as tingles shot straight down her spine, a series of shocks rushing all over her body as she shivered in pleasure.

"I let you go once, and my heart nearly tore itself in two," Harry whispered raggedly against her lips as he pulled back. "That won't ever happen again. I won't allow it."

Daphne chuckled breathlessly, a light shake to her head. "How can I ever say no to that?"

"You don't," he whispered back, a wicked smile appearing on his face. "These feelings…this infatuation I can never free myself from. Neither of us can ever go back."

Without another word, Harry leaned forwards, brushing his lips against the top of her cheek, gliding them down the soft skin of her jaw and across to the soft curve of her lips, giving them a gentle press. The tenderness conveyed what words have not yet; the truth to what Harry felt becoming perfectly clear if it hadn't been before. The kiss, although tender, grew in passion, and what was supposed to be a smooth glide of their mouths turned demanding, more necessary, quickly.

Daphne's hands slid down from Harry's neck and began pulling at his coat, stripping it from his arms. It fell without almost a sound. Harry broke the kiss as his turtleneck soon followed, and her eyes traced and followed every line of muscle that rippled and stretched as they revealed themselves. She was almost intoxicated by the desire that pooled in her loins at the sight of them. Fingertips pressed against their warm hardness, kneading lightly as Daphne ran almost reverent hands across the expanse of Harry's torso.

Soft chuckles broke Daphne from her admiration. And she looked up, startled, to see green eyes shining with mirth. "Enjoying the view?"

Daphne scowled, only adding to his laughter, as her hands crossed over her chest in a petulant manner. "You could have stopped me, you know," she muttered, a disgruntled look in her eyes.

Harry smirked. "What do you think I'm doing?"

Daphne seemed confused for a moment before she felt hands sliding across her back, near the zipper of her dress and understanding dawned in her eyes. Looking up at him somewhat sheepishly, Daphne raised her arms up, giving him all the permission he needed to unzip the gown, letting the white fabric slide down her body to pool around her feet. Harry's hands then curved around her waist as she stepped out of the low heels she had on, pulling her back closely. The exposed skin of their bellies touched, sending shivers running through Daphne's body, just as it had last time; her hands roamed Harry's back as warm, soft lips trailed a searing hot path along her jaw and down the length of her neck, making her breath hitch sharply when they passed the sensitive skin of her pulse point.

Harry's lips then skimmed back to jaw, across her cheeks to lips. Daphne moaned appreciatively as Harry closed over her bottom lip, sucking on it gently. Opening their mouths, the tender skin of their lips clung together as their heads tilted, the smack of lips echoing through the room. The kiss accelerated slowly as Harry curiously ran his tongue against the seam of Daphne's mouth, her lips parting and allowing him inside with only a moment of hesitation at the unexpected pleasure it sent running down to her loins. Snaking his tongue into the warm cavern of her mouth, it didn't take long for Daphne follow in his lead, their jaws undulating slowly as they moved to accommodate the motions of their slick muscles.

Their holds tightened; fingers indented upon skin as desire and lust continuously flowed through their veins; love pounding their hearts away. They stepped together until Daphne's legs found the bed, gently lowering on to the mattress. Harry's hands began sliding upwards, along her hips, the arch of her back and stopping right over the clasp of her bra.

"You can take it off, you know," Daphne whispered against Harry's lips when he noticed his hesitation.

The air seemed to become charged with desire when their eyes locked, the sexual tension wrapping around them like taut guitar strings as fact that only flimsy pieces of cotton and lace separated the two of them dawned on them quickly. Daphne's heartbeat skyrocketed. The flame in her stomach now a raging inferno as his fingers unclasped her bra, the sound seeming to echo across the room; then deft hands slowly guided it down her arms—the bra another garment strewn on the floor without another notice. Harry's eyes ventured down her body to her chest, and Daphne knew there was no one else with whom she would want to be this open, this vulnerable, this exposed; for in his eyes there was lust and desire, a gaze not much different from any other man she'd met, but unlike those others, Harry's held more, feelings that made her heart ache with happiness and a tenderness no one had ever showed her.

And as their mouths joined once more, working gently against each other, Harry used one hand to keep himself propped over Daphne as the other glided down her body, his fingertips deliciously reading every dip and curve. Once at the jut of her hip, his hand dipped into the soft lace of her panties and started sliding the garment down her hips.

Daphne drew away, grinning against his lips. "Smooth."

"I try," he quipped, smirking against her lips before sitting back up to allow him the use of his other arm. With both hands on her hips now, it only took a short moment afterwards and Daphne deftly sliding her long, willowy legs out to have her completely bare for Harry to see. And staring into those heated depths, some part of Daphne was still unable to believe they were actually here, together.

A shuddering breath passed through her lips as fingertips caressed her breasts, tracing hardened peaks and the soft, supple curve of her bosom. "So beautiful," Harry whispered softly, eyes dark with hunger and passion. Leaning down, lips drifted erotically over her chest and upwards to her collarbone, leaving a scorching path of tiny kisses along the way. She squirmed in arousal as hands teasingly drifted to her thighs and her knees spread on instinct.

But the pace was agonizing; the wait feeling like an eternity until finally; finally, his fingers reached their destination. But deep green eyes gazed down into Daphne's, hesitating. She had trouble recognizing why, but late as it was, she only then realized that it probably wasn't just her experiencing these sensation for the first time. And the thought itself caused unexplainable warmth to spread all over her body.

"Daphne…"

Daphne smiled, he arms moving across Harry's back to stroke the tawny skin. "Go ahead…" she whispered encouragingly.

Nodding, Harry, slowly, carefully, slid a single digit in, a soft gasp escaping her lips, her body arching upwards as it entered and began pressing against her inner walls, touching, feeling, exploring. It had her fingers digging into Harry's back as the sensation, unlike with those Muggle men all those weeks ago, was overwhelmingly pleasing. Her pelvis moved, rolling and grinding against every stroke; soft gasps and groans passing through her lips every time. Another finger slipped passed her inner folds, and Daphne tried to squeeze her legs, to incase the feeling as much as possible. But the toned thigh Harry had between them kept them her doing so. The want became only more desperate as the coils in her belly tightened—the pressure increasing. Daphne opened her mouth to try and say something—anything —that could get Harry to go faster or do something to release this pressure, but she was left enough air to only pant, sweat beginning to pour of her body as Harry drove her mental.

Her mind was unable to think, to understand anything except the spearing heat pulsing within her belly. It was almost unbearable. Sometime during this, a third digit slipped past, but Daphne barely registered this against the unbelievable pleasure and pressure swirling through her. But then Daphne's breath caught when Harry thrust deeply and her body stiffened as everything seemed to unravel at the seams, a cry tearing out of her throat.

Daphne didn't even realize when Harry pulled away, a light wetness cooling the skin of her groins. There was a soft rustle of fabric and a heavy clunk of shoes falling to the floor, then a warm weight spread across her entire body, the intimacy of its heat ingraining itself into her memory. Darkened, blue eyes fluttered open when a mouth, light and teasing, brushed against her own. Daphne tilted her chin upwards to fully press against that gentle mouth, her legs wrapping her legs around the back of Harry's thighs as he settled between her legs. Hips rose subconsciously as hard, heated flesh glided teasingly along her outer folds, the scorching sensation eliciting a gasp out of her.

Harry broke the kiss.

Light puffs of his breath mixed with her own as they both hesitated for a second; their eyes gazing into each other's, searching, asking for those last traces of reassurance. And as if in unison, small smiles appeared on their faces as they realized they really had nothing to worry about, for the love and compassion they shared for each other was etched into their eyes. And that was enough. Nodding, slowly, Harry then eased in.

Neither aware of the glow emitted by a small, green emerald in that instant; its light dying off shortly after and revealing a symbol's darkening.

* * *

The two lovers were entwined tightly together. Sweat poured off their bodies as they rocked in a slow cadence, the only sounds in the room coming from their pants and moans. She didn't know how many times or how long they'd been connected together so intimately; she couldn't even think. The only thing she could do was _feel_. Love, lust, desire—they all flowed continuously threw her in a delirious fever.

Looking down into his eyes, Daphne's heart skipped a beat as she saw the same emotions reflected in those beautiful, deep green orbs. A gasp of pleasure tore out of her as sharp thrust stroked a long sizzling trail inside her, shooting shocks up her spine. Her hands tightened around his wrists as she rocked back against him, meeting him with every thrust as his hands griped at her waist. Daphne straightened, arching her back as Harry continued thrust strongly into her. The new angle of her body had her bracing herself over the hardness of Harry's stomach. Desire shot straight to her core as her fingers ran reverently over the slight muscle of his abdomen, delighting in the strength there. Muscles rippled under her fingertips with Harry's every movement—only fueling the flame in her belly even more.

Harry shifted slightly, driving a sharp gasp from Daphne as each successive roll of his hips hit deeper into her. Daphne strained as she sank into that hard length again and again, thighs trembling with every lift of her hips, feeling Harry rock hard and deeply against her and rubbing hot, burning lines of friction against her walls. It began happening again; the ache in her stomach started becoming too much to bare, the sensations bombarding at her body tightening the searing hot coil in her belly.

Suddenly, Daphne was on her back, all thoughts shattering in an instant as the force of Harry's thrusts quickened; his sleek and strong body stretching over hers as he used his arms to brace himself. Her gasps and moans of pleasure were silenced as he covered his mouth over hers, feeling herself quiver as Harry threaded his tongue into her mouth, moving slowly, languidly, against her tongue. Just as well, because Harry then tilted his head, pushing his tongue deeper into her mouth as a sharp thrust hit something inside her, releasing the tightly held coil in the pit of her stomach.

Daphne broke the kiss with a shouted cry, her back arching in a smooth curve as every nerve-ending in her body combusted; the feeling overwhelming her as wave after wave of electrifying tingles crashed against her body. Her hands curled desperately into the sheets on either side of her as her face contorted in ecstasy. A horse rasp of her name followed after her as tremors ran through Harry's body, his face pressed against the curve of her neck.

Slowly her body rode out the last of the swells, and hands lifted to wrap around Harry. He wasn't far off either, his hips giving a few more jerks before slowly coming to a halt, both of them lying together in a tangled mess of sweaty limbs and feeling the heaving of their own chests as they panted for breath.

For that one moment, all Daphne was aware of was Harry's warmth, surrounding her from all sides like, filling the deepest part of her. She didn't know when she fell asleep. But the last thing her eyes caught was Harry's warm, tired smile—his eyes blazing like emeralds. Going from thinking she'd never have a chance at experiencing true love to being able to feel it under the palm of her hands was amazingly world turning.

* * *

Morning came with a bright ray of light. The luminescent shine cast a warm spell over the room; the glow of a new day greeting the slumbering couple with a comforting hand, gently allowing nature to work at their bodies. Light brushes of air wisped at the curtains, breathing in with a soothing sweep of its arms, catching the light fabric that covered their bodies. Daphne was the first to stir, unconsciously snuggling closer into her cocoon of warmth, seeking heat as the cool morning air tingled her skin. The source of the warmth confused her for a moment, but then, as her sleep-fogged mind caught up with her, she smiled.

With a deep, inhaled breath, Daphne's eyes fluttered open. The light of the morning had her blinking a couple of times to adjust to the brightness; however, the sight that welcomed her more than made up for it. _My little savior_, she thought fondly, shifting to brush a stray lock of hair from Harry's face.

She hadn't noticed it before until right now, but Harry constantly had a little wrinkle to his forehead, nothing prominent, but something she realized was probably an aftereffect of all the worries he's had to carry since his childhood The completely relaxed look to his features had Daphne smiling as she realized this was the first time she'd ever seen such an expression on his face.

The little movement seemed to release Harry from the last vestiges of sleep as the arms around her back and waist tightened and emerald eyes appeared in her line of sight.

"Good morning," she said with a small smile, moving forwards slightly to plant a lingering kiss on Harry's lips.

Harry smiled into the kiss, eyes still a bit drowsy. "Morning," he returned, his voice deep and rough from sleep. "How's your body?"

Daphne furrowed her eyebrows as she didn't know the answer to that question yet. Curious, she pressed her hands against turning them over so her legs were on either side of Harry's waist—and immediately, her muscles groaned in protest, showing their displeasure by the light sting that accompanied her movement. She winced at the unexpectedness, but otherwise it wasn't as bad as she thought it was going to be. Even the light sting between her legs was only slightly uncomfortable as she shifted more comfortably over Harry—and that pain was more from using muscles down there she'd never used before.

But Harry saw her wince, concern overtaking his features.

"I'm fine, Harry," she implored, silencing her lover before he said anything with a swift press of her lips. "Nothing I can't handle." Daphne then laid her head in his chest, smiling softly at the slight thumps of Harry's heart.

Harry's arms slithered completely around her in an enveloping hug and felt as his lips pressed against her hair. "I meant what I said yesterday…about everything."

"I know," she whispered happily. Sitting up, Daphne didn't care that she was giving Harry a full view of her body. He was the only man who would get to see it. Last night had opened a whole new dimension to their unexpected relationship—one she didn't want to stop exploring any time soon. And apparently Harry was in agreement with her as she felt something lightly pressing against her behind.

Smiling, Daphne tilted her head just slightly in question. It didn't take long for Harry to catch on. But she only had time to see Harry's roguish smile before her world spun, and not long after, she was wrapping her arms and legs around Harry so not to fall as he carried her into the bathroom.

"Warning, you blasted Gryffindor!" Daphne smacked, amusedly. Only the echoes of Harry's laughter were heard as the door to the bathroom shut behind them.

Outside on the balcony, a small cat looked on—an almost satisfied smile on its whiskered face.

* * *

**Author's Note:** So? Was it as bad as you all thought? If it was...well, it is what it is.

And for future notice, I don't like angst. So when it pops here, be it slight or hitting depressing, know it isn't for long. Our heroes might think it's the end, but that's just because they don't know any better. I wasn't lying when I said ' light and fluffy for the most part.'

Jesus, trust an author.


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